The UNA women’s basketball team had lost two straight games at Flowers and three out of the last four before defeating West Alabama Jan. 26 in a thrilling 66-58 victory.

“It is one of those things where we need to take care of business at home,” said Terry Fowler, head coach.

The Lions’ Mekena Randle hit a layup to put the Lions up 6-4 with 17:11 left in the first half. UNA did not score for six minutes as the Tigers jumped out to an 11-6 lead. The Tigers took a 30-28 lead heading into the break.

Randle was a catalyst for the Lions as she grabbed 17 of the team’s 41 rebounds. She added 11 points to secure the double-double.

“We overall had a good effort on the boards, and that’s what Mekena does,” Fowler said.

Lauren Faris hit a three to put UNA up 37-35 with 15:41 left in the game. The Lions did not lose the lead for the rest of the game.

The Lions had a 60-55 lead with less than two minutes to go in the game when West Alabama’s Brittany Weathers hit a three that brought the Tigers within two points.

The student section then broke out into a rare “Let’s go, offense!” chant after the three by Weathers.

“The fans were great,” Fowler said.

The cheer seemed to help as UNA sunk six straight free throws to secure the 66-58 victory.

“We knew they were in foul trouble, so we just wanted to get to the point where we were shooting one-for-ones to end the game,” Fowler said.

Nichele Fillmore had a career night for the Lions as she scored a career high of 23 points, along with five rebounds.

“She was motivated and she was ready to play,” Fowler said. “If she could play with that type of aggression the rest of the way, we have a chance to have something special.”

The Lions (13-6, 6-3) will travel to Florida to play West Florida Jan. 31.

“We can’t look to Thursday (Jan. 31) today,” Fowler said. “We have to enjoy today, rest tomorrow, and then on Monday, it’s one day at a time.”

After their game with West Florida, UNA will travel to Valdosta State Feb. 2.

“It is a tough road trip,” Fowler said. “We just have to get into the mindset of, ‘We are getting better every day.’”

The Lions will have seven games left before the GSC tournament after their two-game road trip.

“Anybody can beat anybody in this league — it’s tough,” Fowler said.

The key to the end of the schedule is hard work in Flowers Hall and consistency on the road.

“We definitely have to defend the home court,” Fowler said. “And this group has been resilient on the road, and we just have to keep it up.”