Chicago -- The Youngstown State women's basketball team staved off two big UIC runs and had its second-best scoring game of the season in a heartbreaking 68-64 loss at the Flames Athletic Center on Saturday afternoon.
     YSU led 35-28 before UIC scored 14 straight points to take a 42-35 lead and never trailed again. The Penguins trailed by as many as 11 before getting to within two with 17 seconds remaining.
     The Flames' Jasmine Bailey hit 3-of-4 free throws in the final 24 seconds ,and UIC was 14-for-16 in the second half. Camisha Alexander was called for a foul on Bailey on the same whistle as Bailey was called for a double-dribble with 13.4 seconds remaining, but she was awarded the free throws.
     Alexander scored a career-high 18 points and hit all five of YSU's 3-pointers. UIC's Jesse Miller scored a game-high 24 points, 16 of which came in the second half, and hit a 3-pointer with 15:30 remaining that gave UIC a 36-35 lead.
     Miller's trey came in the middle of a 14-0 run, and the Flames later scored 10 consecutive points to take a 56-45 lead with 7:38 remaining.
     UIC still led by 11, 58-47, at the 5:50 mark beore YSU scored six straight points and trailed 58-52 on Alexander's free throw. Miller hit another big trey, only her second and final one of the game, to put UIC ahead 63-54 with 2:59 remaining. The Flames' final five points came from the free-throw line.
     YSU scored six straight points and trailed just 63-60 after two Tiara Scott free throws with 1:00 remaining.
     Shameia Green hit two free throws, and Kelsey Gurganus countered with a jumper to keep the margin at three with 34 seconds left. Bailey then split a pair, and Gurganus answered again with a jumper to cut the margin to 66-64 with 17 seconds remaining. That set up the final sequence with Bailey's free throws that put the Flames ahead four.
     Gurganus and Jaquetta Westley added 12 points apiece, and the Penguins responded from a slow start on the glass to hold a 38-37 rebounding advantage.
     YSU, however, committed 20 turnovers that UIC turned into a 29-8 edge in points off turnovers.
     Bailey finished with 11 points, and Green had 10 for UIC.
     After Alexander missed her first three shots, she went on to hit four of her final six attempts in the first half as the Penguins and Flames were deadlocked at 26 at halftime. She had a half-high 12 points, and Jaquetta Westley had six.
     Both teams struggled offensively at the outset as UIC led just 6-3 five minutes into the game. The Penguins missed their first six shots before Alexander hit her first of four treys in the half.
     The Flames led by as many as five when Jasmine Bailey's bucket at the 14:00 minute mark made the score 8-3. After Heidi Dahnke's basket at the 12:02 mark put UIC ahead 12-8, the Penguins held the Flames without a field goal for the next seven minutes.
     YSU took its first lead at 15-14 after Westley hit two free throws with 7:08 on the clock, and Kenya Middlebrooks put the Guins back on top with 50 seconds remaining in the half once UIC pulled ahead by four. Miller hit a jumper with 11 seconds left for the final tally.
     The Penguins shot 33.3 percent overall in the period, but they shot 36.4 percent from behind the arc hit four more 3-pointers than UIC.
     The Flames shot 35.5 percent in the first 20 minutes but were 0-for-3 from 3-point. They held a 21-18 edge on the glass, but YSU actually closed that gap after being minus six on the boards through the first seven minutes.
     The Penguins shot 36.7 percent overall and were 15-for-18 from the free-throw line. UIC shot 41.8 percent and was 4-for-6 from 3-point land in the second half. The Fames were 18-for-21 overall from the line.
     YSU will return for its final two home games of the season next week. The Penguins will entertain Butler on Thursday at 7:05 p.m. and Valparaiso on Saturday at 2:05 p.m. YSU's six seniors will be honored prior to Saturday's game.