SAN ANTONIO, Texas – Chattanooga hit four free throws in the final 30 seconds Sunday to hold off SIUE 59-49 in the opening game of the UTSA Holiday Classic.

"We had opportunities today but didn't make the best of the opportunities we had," said SIUE Head Coach Paula Buscher. "Our lack of executions can really hurt us."

Shronda Butts led the Cougars with 13 points followed by 12 from Micah Jones.  

SIUE, 5-7, led by five points in the first half with 10:11 to play on a bucket by Donshel Beck. The Cougars were up 17-12 but fell behind by five (31-26) by the halftime buzzer.

The Cougars outscored the Mocs, 10-3, in the paint 24-14. Gwen Adams was a perfect 3 for 3 from the field and added a pair of free throws in her 22 minutes of play.

In the second half, the Mocs took control early by scoring the first five points on a three-pointer by Chelsey Shumpert and a jumper by Jasmine Joyner. That put Chattanooga up by 10 at 36-26.

"We need to do a better job of taking care of the things we can control," said Buscher. "Our offensive execution in the second half wasn't good enough."

SIUE pulled within three points midway through the second half on a three-pointer by Butts, but the Mocs held off the Cougars' charge.

Ka'Vonne Towns led all scorers with 17 points for the Mocs. Sydney Vanlandingham and Shumpert added 11 and 10 points, respectively.

The Cougars now have a short turnaround time for tomorrow's final of the UTSA Holiday Classic against the host Roadrunners, which lost its opening game of the tournament 76-69 to South Dakota.

"This is back-to-back play so both teams will have fatigue issues," said Buscher. "It's a matter of which team has good enough mental focus to win. It helps us prepare for the end of the year when you have to play back to back. We have this one game left to help us solve some of our issues before conference play."

Ohio Valley Conference play begins Thursday at the Vadalabene Center as the Cougars ring in the new year with a 4 p.m. contest against Jacksonville State.