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PHILADELPHIA, Pa. (Dec. 23, 2006) - Aly Hoover hit a three-pointer with 10 seconds to go to force overtime and La Salle scored the first seven points of extra time, as the Explorers edged the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee women's basketball team, 74-69, Saturday afternoon in Philadelphia, Pa.

The Panthers (4-9) led by as many as 14, but struggled shooting from the field in the second half and could not hold on. La Salle (10-2), meanwhile, trailed most of the game and took the lead in overtime for the first time since the 12:23 point of the first half.

"I'm proud of how our kids came to play today. They came out, battled and competed," Milwaukee head coach Sandy Botham said. "I thought we out-played La Salle in a lot of ways today."

Once in the extra frame, La Salle began to pull away, scoring the first seven points of the period to take a 69-64 lead. Sophomore Traci Edwards then converted a pair of free throws and sophomore Turquoise McCain hit a jumper to make it a three-point game.

La Salle hit a pair of charity tosses to push its lead to five points, but Senior Megan Rogers answered with a three-pointer with 27 seconds to go in overtime. Crista Ricketts then converted one-of-two free throws, with McCain getting the rebound when she missed her second try.

Rogers then saw her game-tying attempt fall short with five seconds remain and bounce out of bounds.

"When La Salle put the heat on we started to lose focus," Botham said. "We didn't do the little things. We lost our fundamentals and tried to make passes that weren't there. That's our achilles' heel--we're impatient."

Edwards scored a team-high 23 points to lead three Panthers In double-figures. She added eight rebounds, three blocks and was a perfect 6-for-6 from the free throw line. Rogers chipped in 17 points off the bench and senior Aubrey Hampton added 14 points, six rebounds and six assists for Milwaukee.

Carlene Hightower scored a game-high 26 points for La Salle, while Crista Ricketts also topped the 20-point mark for the home team with 21. Hoover was the home team's next highest scorer with eight.

UWM shot 40 percent on the night, while hitting on 9-of-23 from three-point range. The Panthers did, however, finish a perfect 12-for-12 from the free throw line, setting a school record with free throw percentage. They also had 20 assists on 24 field goals made and held the 43-33 rebounding advantage.

LSC shot 42.6 percent on the day and was a modest 9-of-11 from the free throw line. The Explorers also had just 12 turnovers, compared to 21 assists and 12 steals.

After coming out firing in the first half, Milwaukee cooled off in the second half shooting just 28 percent as La Salle clawed back into the game. UWM didn't allow an LSC basket with the 14:27 mark of the frame.

Edwards and junior Meredith Onson hit back-to-back three's to start the half and extended Milwaukee's four-point halftime lead to 10 early in the half. After the Explorers hit their first basket, Edwards scored the next four points of the game to make it 50-38 with 12:54 to play. La Salle then went on an 11-0 run to pull within one at 50-49 three minutes later.

UWM could not pull away, fending off LSC until late in the half when Aly Hoover banked in a three-pointer with 10 seconds to play to tie the game and send it into overtime at 62-62.

The Panthers broke open a 15-15 game midway through the first half with a 19-5 run for a 14-point lead. With the game at 25-20, UWM scored the next nine points for a game-high 14-point lead at 34-20 with 4:55 to go in the half. The Explorers then fought within four with a 10-2 run of their own to end the frame and head into intermission trailing just 40-36.

"Our kids came out to play today," Botham said. "They are tired of losing and came out and played like it. We looked to set the tone in transition and were very successful at that early."

Milwaukee came out to the gates on fire, playing pressure defense and converting on the offensive end. As a team, it shot 51.7 percent for the period, including 6-of-10 from three-point range. The Panthers did commit 10 turnovers, but held a decisive 20-11 rebounding advantage and had 13 assists on 15 made field goals. La Salle shot a respectable 46.9 percent, hitting five 3-pointers and turning the ball over just five times.

Milwaukee returns to action after the holidays, opening its league season Dec. 28 at home against Loyola.