GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. – MSU Denver freshman guard Brooklynn Jones drained a 3-pointer from the top of the key with nine seconds to go, lifting the Roadrunners to a 54-52 victory Saturday night at Colorado Mesa.
 
On a night when the Roadrunners had trouble connecting from 3-point range, and a night after the Roadrunners lost at Westminster on a 3-pointer at the buzzer, Jones' big shot was particularly sweet.
 
MSU Denver found a way to win despite shooting just 31.6 percent from the field (18 of 57), 31.3 percent from 3 (5 of 16) and 59.1 percent from the free throw line (13 of 22).
 
The Roadrunners made just 2 of 16 (12.5 percent) from the field in the third quarter.
 
"The fact that we shot the way we did and we were still able to win, I'm just really happy we were able to find a way," MSU Denver coach Tanya Haave said. "Not finishing, not making free throws, to find a way to win on the road. … It was a great team win. We stuck together and figured it out. That's important."
 
MSU Denver trailed by as many as nine points in the fourth quarter before rallying for the win that put them 3-5 overall and 1-1 in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference.
 
After falling behind 49-40 with 7:10 left, MSU Denver kept Mesa scoreless for nearly four minutes while toiling to get within one point.
 
Then Mesa was able to score only three points the rest of the way, the last coming on a free throw with 2:15 left that made it 52-50.
 
MSU Denver's Jaiden Galloway made a free throw with 45 seconds left to get the Roadrunners within 52-51, and then the Roadrunners got a stop on the defensive end and called timeout to set up the game-winning play.
 
Jones' basket was on her only shot of the game in four minutes of action. She is now shooting 50 percent from 3 (14 of 28) this season.
 
"People are keying on (RMAC scoring leader) Kendra Parra right now, and so we used her as a decoy and getting Brooklynn a shot was a little bit of the plan for sure," MSU Denver Tanya Haave said. "We wanted to leave a little less time on the clock, but she was so open she just shot it in."
 
The lead was MSU Denver's first since late in the third quarter.
 
After Jones' basket, Parra's steal sealed the victory.
 
While MSU Denver's offense was at times frustrating, its defense was excellent while forcing 19 turnovers, including a season-high 13 on steals.
 
"We're starting to learn when to get steals and to have better positioning," Haave said. "Our ball pressure was key."
 
Parra led the Roadrunners with 15 points, while Tosjanae Bonds scored 10. Mariana Silva Pereira had eight points, six rebounds and three steals.