Trailing by one with 35 seconds left, Dallas Lincoln forced two turnovers, turning both into layups and a 50-47 win over Dickinson on Saturday in the girls Class 4A state championship.
Lincoln trailed 47-46 when Breanna Johnson stripped the ball from Brianna Hypolite, leading to a tough baseline layup by Kimetria Hayden, giving Lincoln its first lead since the first quarter.
Ten seconds later, another steal by Chynna Brown led to a fastbreak basket by Britney Gowans. Given one last chance with the ball with four seconds left, Dickinson's inbounds pass was swiped by Gowans and Lincoln finished off its second state championship title in five years.
Hayden finished with 22 points and nine rebounds and Gowans had 16 points for Lincoln (29-4).
Marissa Ashton scored 14 to lead Dickinson (35-5), which lost in the final for the second straight year.
The quick turnaround stunned Dickinson, which led by eight early in the fourth. Even when Lincoln had whittled the lead to 47-44, Dickinson still seemed to be in control until Lincoln turned up the defensive pressure.
Dickinson had led 19-10 after the first quarter and was up by 33-23 at halftime behind a defense that shut down Lincoln on the perimeter. Lincoln's Taylor Morrow, who tied a tournament record with seven 3-pointers in the semifinals, made just one in the final.
But Dickinson's couldn't sustain the fast start. The Gators scored just 14 points in the second half, struggling to find the run that could have put the game away. The Gators managed just five field goals in the second half. Hypolite had eight of Dickinson's 15 turnovers.
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