JACKSON, Miss. – Junior Quintiyus Causey had a Mississippi University for Women career high 29 points, but it was not enough as The W lost a heart-breaking 85-80 decision at the Rugg Arena.
 
Causey, a junior from Cleveland, Miss., more than doubled his previous high game this season (13 points back on Nov. 16, also versus Belhaven). Causey connected on 11-of-15 from the field, made 2-of-4 from beyond the arc and canned 5-of-10 free throws.
 
With the Owls down by 10 points, 81-71, with less than 80 seconds remaining, Causey ignited The W's late charge that got the team to within a single basket. Causey would score six-consecutive points for MUW: A pair of free throws with 1:19 on the clock; a mid-range jumper at the 1:06 mark, and after a BU free throw; another jumper at 48 seconds that made the score 82-77.
 
Teammate Shon Wright canned a long-distance three ball that got the Owls to within two, 82-80, with 29 tics left on the game clock. But The W would get no closer as Belhaven made 3-of-4 free throws in the waning moments to ice the game.
 
Owls' Head Coach Dean Burrows – while happy with his team's grit – saw some areas that may well have changed the final outcome for his unit.
 
"Since we've gotten here, we've talked daily about how the game will forever come down to the little, boring, fundamentalists that most grow bored of," Burrows explained. "While it was obvious to those in attendance and who watched that our guys played with a ton of heart for most of the game, the lapses where we were selfish, were glowing. We had five assists to zero turnovers in the first five minutes of the game and finished the night with 15 assists to 20 turnovers. That cannot happen at any level of our game. We missed 12 free throws - some of those the front end of the one-and-one, as well, and that again was self-inflicted."
 
"You add those statistical categories up, and it's a testament to our guys that we made it as good of a game as they did. At times, we executed at a very high level, more so than we've done all year in my opinion. We were short-handed coming into this contest tonight and we will never make an excuse, as we consistently talk about having a 'next man up' mentality. We had some impressive performances individually. I felt Grayson Long more than answered the bell tonight. Dariun Doss continues to get better and show me what I've believed about him since we got going. We have to buy into the fact that things that we do once the ball is tipped, add up to being successful or not as per the scoreboard."
 
Thomas Wright continued his torrid shooting pace versus the Blazers. Wright was 5-for-6 from the field and 7-of-10 from the charity stripe. He also grabbed seven rebounds.
 
On the season, Thomas Wright is shooting a blistering 77.6 percent (59-76) from the field, overall.
 
Shon Wright had a double-double game with 12 points and a game-leading 12 rebounds. He was 4-of-8 from three-point range.
 
Long had five assists for The W.
 
The Owls will next be in action on Saturday at home versus Arkansas Baptist College. Tip-off at Pohl Gym is slated for 4 p.m.