The RoundHouse | 11/10/2018 5:58:00 PM

 
Carla Bremaud and Seraphine Bastin bounced into the interview room, unsure where to go and happy to be there.

They laughed and hugged, buzzed on victory after Wichita State's 63-60 win over Missouri State in overtime on Saturday at Koch Arena. They commandeered the microphones, not waiting for questions, and giggled as they played press conference.
 
"It was really a good game," Bastin said. "And, thanks to my roommate, Carla, we did a good job."
 
That sums it up. 
 
Bremaud's long three-pointer with five seconds to play in regulation tied the game 53-all and forced overtime. In overtime, the Shockers (2-0) overcame four turnovers, helped by Bastin's four points and five from Ashley Reid, to hold off Missouri State (0-1).
 
Bremaud remembered making one other buzzer-beater in her career, a game-winner playing for a French national team in a tournament. The Shockers got the ball down 53-50 with 20 seconds to play and their first move went nowhere. Bastin kept the ball moving and found Bremaud open several steps behind the three-point line, perhaps so far out Missouri State didn't expect to defend her. 
 
"I was open, so I took my chance," Bremaud said. "I missed a lot of shots before, so I just had to keep shooting like everybody told me."
 
Bastin said, "It was amazing. I was like 'Oh my gosh, this girl is crazy.' I'm proud of her."
 
Bremaud finished with 15 points after making 2-of-7 threes. Bastin added eight points, six assists and two steals. The roommates – both freshmen – played leading roles in turning defeat into a dramatic win. Wichita State senior Sabrina Lozada-Cabbage, the team's leading scorer, fouled out with 44 seconds to play in regulation and the Shockers trailing 52-48. From that point, the Shockers outscored the Bears 15-8 with Bremaud and Bastin combining for nine of those points.
 
 "We had more confidence when she was on the floor with us," Bremaud said. "So, we had to do it without her."
 
That told Wichita State coach Keitha Adams two things. She was pleased to see her newcomers step up without their lone healthy senior to help. She was also pleased for Lozada-Cabbage to watch her teammates deliver and see the burden is not all on her shoulders.
 
"We showed a lot of character," Adams said. "We faced some adversity and we came through it with the win. We showed some fight."
 
The Shockers mixed up their defenses, playing zone and man and trapping, to keep Missouri State guessing. Missouri State shot 20 of 69 from the field (29 percent) and 4 of 26 from three (15.4 percent), which negated its advantages in rebounding (plus-14 on the offensive glass) and turnovers (plus-8). The Shockers survived their ball-handling and rebounding issues with defense and timely scoring in the final six minutes.
 
"If you played them one defense all game, they're going to find their rhythm," Adams said. "Our offense wasn't doing it for us, but our defense did."
 
Reid, a junior-college transfer, scored five of her seven points in overtime. Her move to point guard allowed Adams to put Bastin in the high post in overtime to exploit that opening against Missouri State's half-court trap. Bastin scored four points in overtime to give the Shockers a 57-56 lead and Reid's floater made it a three-point edge.
 
Winning with a freshman backcourt isn't easy. Adams points to their international competition.
 
"They've played on some big stages for their national teams," she said. "They have some good experience for young players. It starts with our point guards. Those guys have got to set the tone for our team. Being vocal. Bringing confidence. You've got to have somebody on the floor that's got some swagger. I think Seraphine does that for us."
 
Paul Suellentrop covers Wichita State Athletics and the American Athletic Conference for university Strategic Communications. Contact him at paul.suellentrop@wichita.edu.