Luko must be a good listener.
The Nixa senior grabbed the rebound and took the ball just inside the 3-point line when two defenders stopped her, but immediately left her. Luko ducked her head and dropped in a layup just as the regulation buzzer went off, forcing overtime.
Then Luko turned it on in overtime with eight points, making just enough free throws to lift Nixa to a 57-54 overtime victory over Waynesville on Wednesday night in a Class 5 sectional at Southwest Baptist University.
"I knew the clock was running down. They stopped me and when I got to the basket, no one was there," said Luko, who led the Lady Eagles with 17 points.
The game was won in overtime, but could have been won in the fourth quarter or made easier in overtime if the Lady Eagles would have made their free throws. Nixa (22-8) was 8 of 23 from the free-throw line, including 6 of 19 in the fourth quarter and overtime.
The Eagles missed the front end of three one-and-ones after the 1:32 mark, allowing Waynesville (20-6) to not only get back in the game, but nearly win it.
A Medina Smith putback after an offensive rebound — one of her nine rebounds in the game — gave Waynesville a 47-46 lead. Simone Sullivan then grabbed a Bethanie Funderburk miss and extended the lead to 48-46 with a free throw.
Sullivan missed the second free throw, but Orielle Thomas grabbed the offensive rebound and missed the front end of the one-and-one before Luko tied it.
Then in overtime, Luko took charge. She scored the Lady Eagles' first five points. But again, the free-throw jinx took over.
Nixa was 4 of 12 from the line, allowing Waynesville to stay close. Katie Pritchard had a game-high 26, but couldn't hit a 25-foot 3-point attempt to tie it.
"That's what we do. We get the lead late and make free throws. We shoot 71 percent on the season. And it's not like it wasn't different people, either. I guess we made enough to get by," Nixa coach Randy Towe said.
As has been its pattern, Nixa (22-8) fell behind early. The Lady Eagles came out in a zone, but Pritchard shot them out of it, making four of her first five 3-point attempts and scoring 16 points in the first quarter.
Smith finished with 13 points for Waynesville.
Abby Bracker had 13 points and nine rebounds for Nixa and Funderburk had 11 points on 5-of-19 shooting.
Nixa will play Columbia Hickman (27-1) in a Class 5 quarterfinal at 2:45 p.m. Saturday in Sedalia at the Fred E. Davis Multipurpose Center at State Fair Community College.
Class 5 sectional
At Southwest Baptist University
Waynesville 20 9 12 7 6--54
Nixa 12 18 9 9 9--57
Waynesville (20-6) — Simone Sullivan 4, Orielle Thomas 6, Medina Smith 13, Katie Pritchard 26, Italy Taylor 2, Natascha Lord 3
Nixa (22-8) — Abby Bracker 13, Bethanie Funderburk 11, Emily Walker 3, Ashlee Luko 17, Randa Raper 5, Tara Temple 2, Barb Lawrence 6