CONWAY, S.C. – Bradley scored a layup as time expired to come away with a 61-59 victory over George Mason women's basketball on Friday afternoon in the first game of the Coastal Carolina Thanksgiving Classic in Conway, S.C.

With the game tied at 59 all, the Patriots had a chance to take the lead with two seconds remaining. Senior Alexsis Grate was fouled on a drive to the basket but was unable to convert on either free throw attempt. After Bradley called a timeout to advance the ball, the Braves hit an open Chelsea Brackmann under the basket at the buzzer. The Patriots drop to 4-3 overall while the Braves improve to 5-1.

Junior Camarie Gatling posted her fifth career double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds to lead the Patriots. Junior Nicole Cardaño-Hillary added 13 points, six rebounds and five steals. She scored eight of her 13 points on 4-of-7 shooting in the first half.

Senior Jacy Bolton surpassed 600 career rebounds with six boards against the Braves. She now sits 13th all-time with 603 rebounds. She also added 11 points and three steals in the loss.

Mason jumped out to an early 7-0 advantage after baskets from Gatling, Bolton and Cardaño-Hillary. But the Braves battled back with three straight three-pointers to lead with under three minutes remaining (9-7). Senior Sarah Kaminski later found Gatling under the basket as time expired to even the score after one period of play (12-12).

To open the second quarter, Bradley scored nine straight points to jump back in front (21-14). Back-to-back baskets by Tamia Lawhorne and Cardaño-Hillary cut the Braves' advantage to three with 5:03 on the clock. After another Bradley push, Mason responded with a 5-0 spurt to cut the deficit to four at the half, 33-29.

Mason shot 39.4 percent from the field (13-33) and 27.3 percent (3-11) from deep during the first half while not making a trip to the free throw line. Both teams combined for 20 turnovers, with Mason forcing 13 giveaways by the Braves. At the break, Bradley held the advantage on the glass (25-14), points in the paint (14-8) and second chance points (11-0).

The Patriots came out firing on all cylinders to open the third quarter. An and-one by Cardaño-Hillary gave Mason its first lead since the 9:31 minute-mark in the second period (34-33). At the media timeout, Mason had outscored Bradley 11-6 to lead 40-39 with 4:15 remaining. Bradley then ignited for a 10-0 run to finish the quarter with a seven-point edge (52-45).

Mason outscored Bradley 14-5 during the fourth quarter to reclaim the lead with 44 seconds remaining. After a Cardaño-Hillary steal, Grate dished out a pass to Kaminski on the fast break (59-57). Bradley responded with a layup of its own with 23 seconds to go. Mason ran down the clock as Grate drove to the basket and drew a foul with two seconds left in the game. The senior guard was unable to convert on either free throw attempt as the score remained tied (59-59). After Bradley called a timeout to advance the ball, the Braves hit a wide open Brackmann under the basket at the buzzer.

Mason looks to bounce back against Coastal Carolina on Sunday. Tip-off is scheduled for 2 p.m. at the HTC Center.