LORMAN &045; Remember growing up and listening to your teachers and parents issue instructions to use your time wisely?

Apparently Alcorn backup center Rasaan Powell was paying attention.

The 6-2 true freshman from Columbia occupied only 11 minutes of court time, but that did not stop her from scoring 13 points, pulling down four rebounds and overall being the difference maker in a 68-56 victory against Mississippi Valley State at the Whitney Complex on Saturday.

The win moves the Lady Braves (9-12) to 7-5 in Southwestern Athletic Conference play, just two games behind league leading Jackson State.

&uot;She’s come a long way. We had expected her to add some minutes early on, and now we’re starting to get satisfaction in the way she’s improving,&uot; Alcorn head coach Shirley Walker said. &uot;We knew she had both talent and the body. We needed somebody to get the job done.&uot;

When starting forward Tnonealyer Powers picked up her second foul with a little more than five minutes left in the first, the Lady Braves looked to Powell for minutes.

Powell’s play paid immediate dividends. First by canning six of eight freebies on her initial four touches. And then, with her two field goals inside of three feet in the final 14 seconds, including one she released as the halftime horn sounded.

Her 10 points in the last quarter of the half were a main reason the Lady Braves carried a nine-point lead to the break.

&uot;I thought she was the difference in the game,&uot; Valley head coach Nathaniel Kilbert said. &uot;When their other posts weren’t playing like they would’ve liked, she came in and scored and didn’t get into foul trouble.&uot;

Powell’s production turned things around for Alcorn, which blew a 10-point lead and saw the Devilettes (5-15, 3-9) to a bucket lead, 26-24, with 3:28 left.

Valley reserve Robin Williams outworked Shirley Gooch on the low block, prompting Walker to make a move to her bench. The choice of Powell made her look like a genius.

&uot;That’s what we always want from players coming off the bench because they have to contribute,&uot; Walker said. &uot;I’ve got confidence in (Powell’s) free throws and she was able to make them.&uot;

Alcorn kept the pedal floored coming out of the break, pushing its 36-27 cushion up to 14 with a Shikhia Sims 3-pointer and the bullying play from post players Powers and Candace Roberts, who led all scorers with 18 rebounds and pulled down 11 boards.

While the Devilettes suffered misfortune when their outside shots continued to rim out, their ability to position themselves for offensive boards kept them around. Rejohnna Anthony finally nailed a trey for Valley, who closed within 48-42 with 9:17 on the strength of a 7-0 run.

&uot;That’s part of our game,&uot; Kilbert said. &uot;That’s what has kept us close in games against Southern, Jackson State and Alabama State. We know we have to live with it or fall by it.&uot;

Another triple, this one from Kebra Nanton, closed the gap to four, 51-47, with 7:47 left. It was the closest the Devilettes had been since late in the first half.

Alcorn could not build a comfortable lead at the foul line, as the margin flip-flopped between six and four points for the next two and a half minutes until Powell picked up a steal, got it back on the other end and buried a pair of free throws.

&uot;My teammates had confidence in me and I tried my best to make the shots,&uot; said Powell, who prayed when deciding between Alcorn and other SWAC schools. &uot;In practice we spend about 15 or 20 minutes and then some of us stay afterward shooting free throws.&uot;

Valley carved it back down to six off a Nanton jumper and a successful trip to the charity stripe for Tamika Robertson with 3:07 remaining. Robertson and Nanton led Valley off the bench with 11 points apiece.

The Devilettes had a pair of good looks at closing to five, but Nanton failed on the jumper and Natasha Booth missed the putback.

&uot;Luckily, they did miss their shots because usually when we turn the ball over, the other team converts. We didn’t want that to happen.&uot;