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LSC Women's Basketball Weekly Release (12/05/16)
- 1. LSC WOMEN’S BASKETBALL AngeloState is the only unbeaten Lone Star Conference women’s basketball team at 6-0 overall and 2-0 in league action. Eastern New Mexico, Tarleton State and Texas A&M-Commerce are also undefeated in LSC action. This week’s schedule includes eight league games with one Tuesday, four Thursday and three Saturday. The LSC women are 46-34 overall. The women’s squads are currently 12-8 combined against the Heartland, and 9-9 versus RMAC teams, which are the other conferences in the NCAA South Central Region. PLAYERS OF THE WEEK OFFENSIVE Mikaehla Connor, Eastern New Mexico University, JR, Wing, Dallas, Texas, Grand Canyon Connor’s strong offensive performance helped the Greyhounds post wins in two tightly contested Lone Star Conference road games. On Saturday, her career-best 19-point effort included a 3-for-4 effort outside the three point line in a come-from-behind win over West Texas A&M. Her final basket of the day came on a three-point shot with 1:47 remaining to give the Hounds the lead for good. The victory marked the first time ENMU earned a road win over WT since 1981 and the Lady Buff’s third home loss since the beginning of the 2013-14 season. On Thursday against UT Permian Basin, Connor poured in 16 points, which included 11 points in the second half. For the game, she committed just one turnover and connected on all five free-throw attempts. DEFENSIVE Daeshi McCants, Eastern New Mexico University, JR, Forward, Las Cruces, N.M., Texas-El Paso McCants superlative defensive effort helped Eastern post a pair of road wins to open Lone Star Conference play. Her performance helped Eastern limit the opposition to just 64 points per game in contests against UT Permian Basin and seventh-ranked West Texas A&M. In the Greyhounds first road win over WT since 1981, McCants poured in a season-best 20 points, rejected three shots, and collected five rebounds. Her performance helped limit the Lady Buffs to just eight second-half field goals with one from three-point range. On Thursday, McCants free throw with 20 seconds left snapped a 61-all tie and lifted ENMU to a win over UTPB. She scored nine points, snared nine caroms and blocked a shot. McCant’s blocked shot came with 4:29 left in the game and ENMU clinging to a one-point lead. OTHER TOP PERFORMERS Jordan Gutierrez, Western New Mexico, poured in a career-high 36 points against UT Permian Basin, which is the top scoring game in the Lone Star Conference so far this season and is the fourth-highest total in all of Division II so far this year. She made 14-19 from the field (74 percent), 5-6 (83 pct) from three and added a 3-4 (75 pct) effort at the foul line against the Falcons. In addition, she had five rebounds, two assists and a steal in 38 minutes. Against nationally-ranked West Texas A&M, Gutierrez tallied 14 points, making three three- pointers, along with three rebounds, three assists and three steals. She averaged 25 points, 55 percent on field goals, 62 percent from three-point range, 4.0 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 2.0 steals per game. Previous scoring highs for Gutierrez came last year when she tallied 29 points. Mackenzie Hailey, Tarleton State University, was on fire for the TexAnns last weekend as the sophomore forward led the TexAnns to back-to-back wins over Midwestern State and Cameron to open Lone Star Conference play with a 2-0 mark. Hailey averaged 22.0 points per contest as she topped 20 points in both games, as well as grabbing 11.5 rebounds per game for the weekend in two double-double performances. Hailey was .609 on 14-23 shooting from the floor and .938 at the charity stripe. In Saturday’s win over Cameron, the TexAnns were trailing by 17 at the start of the fourth quarter before the Hailey-led TexAnns mounted on the largest comebacks in school history to take care of the Aggies in overtime. Hailey scored 19 of her 23 points in the second half and overtime to lead the rally while also dishing out a team high three assists. She also connected for seven of Tarleton’s final 11 points in the last 3:46 of regulation to force overtime, where the TexAnns capped off a 90-89 win. Natalie Halbleib, Cameron University, averaged a double-double last week, with 18 points and 10 rebounds against Texas A&M-Commerce and 20 points and 14 rebounds against Tarleton State. Against the Lions she hit 5-10 from three point range and helped CU reach 89 points in the overtime loss. Halbleib’s 20 points against the TexAnns topped her career high on a night where the Aggies scored 89 points again. She has now gone three straight games with a double-double, and five straight with at least one three pointer made. Jasmine Prophet, Angelo State University, came off the bench for the No. 6/8 Belles against Texas Woman’s to lead the team in scoring. The senior scored a season high 18 points and grabbed seven rebounds. She hit 61.5-percent form the field and blocked three shots. Krystal Pickron, Texas A&M University - Commerce, had a career week, setting career highs in nearly every statistical category. She scored 25 points in the Lions’ comeback win against Cameron. She got to the free throw line at will and was also a contributor on the boards. She followed up her scoring outburst with a career-high six assists against Midwestern State. She also had seven rebounds and had three steals. Pickron is sixth in the conference in scoring average. Sydney Walton, West Texas A&M University, scored a career-high 24 points against Western New Mexico as she went a perfect 10 for 10 from the field, 2 for 2 from beyond the arc and 2 for 2 from the line in the Lady Buffs’ 100-52 win over Western New Mexico in the conference opener Thursday. Walton finished the week with 30 points as she was 12 of 17 from the field (.706), 2 of 3 from beyond the arc and 4 of 4 from the line, while WOMEN’S STANDINGS School LSC Overall Streak Angelo State 2-0 6-0 W6 Texas A&M-Commerce 2-0 6-2 W3 Eastern New Mexico 2-0 4-2 W3 Tarleton State 2-0 3-4 W2 West Texas A&M 1-1 6-2 L1 Texas A&M-Kingsville 1-1 4-2 W1 UT Permian Basin 1-1 4-4 W1 Texas Woman’s 0-2 5-3 L2 Western New Mexico 0-2 4-4 L3 Midwestern State 0-2 2-5 L5 Cameron 0-2 2-6 L2 WOMEN’S SCHEDULE Tuesday, December 06, 2016 *UT Permian Basin at West Texas A&M, 5:30 p.m. Thursday, December 08, 2016 *Angelo State at Midwestern State, 5:30 p.m. *Tarleton State at Western New Mexico, 6:30 p.m. *Texas A&M-Commerce at Eastern New Mexico, 6:30 p.m. *West Texas A&M at Texas Woman’s, 7 p.m. Saturday, December 10, 2016 *UT Permian Basin at Texas Woman’s, 2 p.m. *Texas A&M-Commerce at Western New Mexico, 3 p.m. *Tarleton State at Eastern New Mexico, 6 p.m. Texas A&M-Kingsville at Texas A&M Int’l, 6 p.m. Tuesday, December 13, 2016 St. Mary´s at Texas A&M-Kingsville, 5:15 p.m. Lubbock Chris an at Tarleton State, 5:30 p.m. All mes are CST; *LSC game LAST WEEK’S RESULTS Complete results at lonestarconference.org. WEEKLY AWARDS Date Women’s Offensive N-16 Jordan Gutierrez, Western New Mexico N-22 Taylor Dorsey, Angelo State N-29 Taylor Dorsey, Angelo State (2) D-5 Mikaehla Connor, Eastern New Mexico Date Women’s Defensive N-16 Alexis Nezianya, Texas Woman’s N-22 Madison Parker, West Texas A&M N-29 Kaylin Roher, Texas A&M-Kingsville D-5 Daeshi McCants, Eastern New Mexico WOMEN’S BASKETBALL LONE STAR CONFERENCE WEEKLY RELEASE | DECEMBER 5, 2016 Contact: Melanie Robotham | Assistant Commissioner | O: 972-234-0033 x. 103 melanie@lonestarconference.org | www.lonestarconference.org | Twitter: @LoneStarConf #LSCwbb
- 2. LONE STAR CONFERENCEBASKETBALL WEEKLY RELEASE Page 2 averaging 4.5 rebounds per game with four assists, one block and one steal. She averaged 15.0 points per game for the week. It was her second game in double figures for the Lady Buffs and a career-high both at WT and at Oklahoma State. Walton’s 10 for 10 outing was one of the best in school history and first time in her career being perfect from the field in that many attempts. Mackenzie Hailey, Tarleton State University, was a defensive juggernaut for the TexAnns last weekend as the sophomore forward led the TexAnns to back-to-back wins over Midwestern State and Cameron to open Lone Star Conference play with a 2-0 mark. Hailey averaged 22.0 points per contest as she topped 20 points in both games, as well as grabbing 11.5 rebounds per game for the weekend in two double-double performances. Hailey was .609 on 14-23 shooting from the floor and .938 at the charity stripe. She also led the team with nine steals and two blocked shots for the weekend. In Saturday’s win over Cameron, the TexAnns were trailing by 17 at the start of the fourth quarter before the Hailey-led TexAnns mounted on the largest comebacks in school history to take care of the Aggies in overtime. Hailey scored 19 of her 23 points in the second half and overtime to lead the rally while also dishing out a team high three assists. She also connected for seven of Tarleton’s final 11 points in the last 3:46 of regulation to force overtime, where the TexAnns capped off a 90-89 win. Kaylee Kana, Texas A&M University - Kingsville, put together an impressive start to LSC play, pulling down 16 rebounds versus nationally-ranked Angelo State University... two days later, the senior filled up the stat sheet, finishing with 16 points on 7-of-10 shooting, five rebounds, four assists and four steals in the win over Texas Woman’s... for the week, Kana recorded four assists, five steals, 21 rebounds and 17 points. Jenna Price, Texas A&M University - Commerce, was a force on the defensive end in both of A&M-Commerce’s wins last week. She had a career day with 15 points and 14 rebounds against Cameron. She had six offensive rebounds on the day and her hustle on both ends of the floor drew whistles that sent her to the free throw line. Against Midwestern, Price had her best statistical defensive game. She had four steals and a block, helping to hold the Mustangs to just 18 points in the final 18 minutes of the game. She is averaging a double-double in conference play. Madi Greenwood, Angelo State University, helped the No. 6/8 Belles perimeter defense holding TAMUK and TWU to just 56.0 points per game. The junior guard set a season high with two blocks against the Pioneers. She grabbed 11 total rebounds in the two games including nine on the defensive end. She also recorded one steal and handed out six assists. Jordan Gutierrez, Western New Mexico, poured in a career-high 36 points against UT Permian Basin, which is the top scoring game in the Lone Star Conference so far this season and is the fourth-highest total in all of Division II this year entering this weekend. She made 14-19 from the field (74), 5-6 (83) from three and added a 3-4 effort at the foul line against the Falcons. In addition, she had five rebounds, two assists and a steal in 38 minutes. Against nationally-ranked West Texas A&M Gutierrez tallied 14 points, making three three-pointers, along with three rebounds, three assists and three steals. She averaged 25 points, 55 percent on field goals, 62 percent from three-point range, 4.0 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 2.0 steals per game. Previous scoring highs for Gutierrez came last year when she tallied 29 and 28 points in a game. She led the team in steals with four and was third in rebounds with eight, grabbing seven on the defensive end. Sasha Watson, West Texas A&M University, tallied four steals in a pair of games this past week, while leading the team with 12 assists and tied for third on the team in rebounding averaging 4.0 per game. She was 10 of 16 from the field (.625), 1 of 3 from beyond the arc and a team-high 8 of 11 from the line. Watson and the Lady Buffs held Western and Eastern New Mexico to shoot just .316 from the field for the weekend and held the opposition in check on the boards averaging just 27.5 rebounds per game and 62.0 points per game. WT forced 16 steals and 33 turnovers for the week as Watson accounted for one-fourth of the thefts. LSC NOTES (Submitted by LSC SID’s) Angelo State The No. 6/8 Belles improved to 6-0 and 2-0 in the LSC with wins over Texas A&M-Kingsville and Texas Woman’s. ASU is holding teams to 59.2 points per game and forcing 20.7 turnovers per game. The Belles 81.2 points per game is tops in the LSC. Taylor Dorsey averages 21.8 points per game and leads the LSC. Kevin Baker earned his 100th collegiate victory last week. The Belles will return to the court on Thursday in Wichita Falls. Cameron The Aggie women went 0-2 last week, falling to Texas A&M-Commerce 94-89 and Tarleton State 90-89 in overtime. Against the Lions, Cameron shot 45 percent from the field, but only hit on 9-32 from the three point line and 6-12 from the charity stripe. They had four players reach double-figures, with Savanna James scoring 22 points and Natalie Halbleib recording a double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds. CU led most of the game against TSU, until a fourth quarter run sent the game to overtime, where the Aggies would fall by one point. Cameron shot 46 percent from the field and 33 percent from three point range. They had three players reach 20 points, including Halbleib, who had her second double-double of the week. Eastern New Mexico With two wild wins to open the Lone Star Conference season, the Eastern New Mexico women’s basketball team improved to 4-2 on the season. The Hounds got off to a quick start at UT Permian Basin and charged to a 19-point lead. After the Falcons charged back, the teams traded the lead 10 times, before Daeshi McCants drained a go-ahead free throw with 20 seconds left. Mikaehla Connor paced the Hounds with 16 points, while Amari Dennis added 13 points. McCants had nine points and nine rebounds. On Saturday, ENMU rallied from a 12-point deficit for its first road win over West Texas A&M since January 19, 1981. The game also marked WT’s third home loss since the start of the 2013-14 season. Despite a rebounding deficit of eight, Eastern held a 9-4 edge in second-chance points. Eastern also connected on 11 three-point shots in the game. McCants poured in a career-best 20 points, grabbed five rebounds and blocked three shots as ENMU limited WT to eight field goals and one three-point bucket in the second half. Midwestern State 0-2 last week. LSC BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP MARCH 2-3-4-5 | ALLEN, TEXAS
- 3. LONE STAR CONFERENCEBASKETBALL WEEKLY RELEASE Page 3 Tarleton State Tarleton put together a pair of thrilling wins to open Lone Star Conference play with a 2-0 mark in Lone Star Conference play. Mackenzie Hailey led the way with back-to-back double-double performances while Travanti Downes and Kylie Collins gave Tarleton a huge lift off the bench Saturday as Tarleton roared back from a 17-point fourth-quarter deficit to beat Cameron 90-89 in overtime. Texas A&M-Commerce The Lions won both of their games in the first week of conference play. They had a come-from-behind win against Cameron and won big against Midwestern State, at one point going on a 31-6 run. The Lions are leading the conference in rebounding and are second in scoring average. Four Lions are averaging double figures in scoring. Their 6-2 record is their best start to a season under coach Burton and their best start since the 2008- 09 season. Texas A&M-Kingsville Texas A&M-Kingsville went 1-1 to begin Lone Star Conference play... in the week split, Kaylee Kana averaged 8.5 points, 10.5 rebounds and registered five steals... in the victory over Texas Woman’s, the first LSC win since March 2014, Kana drained three triples and the Hogs went 7-of-8 from long distance. Texas Woman’s TWU dropped two games during opening weekend of LSC play, 67-55 at Texas A&M-Kingsville and 74-53 at Angelo State. UT Permian Basin UT Permian Basin split this past weekend, dropping a 63-61 contest against Eastern New Mexico in the team’s first LSC game, and taking a 75-63 win over Western New Mexico for the first Lone Star Conference win in team history. The Falcons rallied from trailing by 19 points after the first quarter to take a 3-point lead against the Greyhounds, but lost by a pair of points. UTPB came back two days later to defeat the Mustangs by 12 points. The Falcons had six players average at least seven points on the weekend. West Texas A&M The No. 7-ranked Lady Buffs split two Lone Star Conference games this past week as they opened league play with a 100-52 win over Western New Mexico and couldn’t hold onto a 32-25 lead against Eastern New Mexico, falling 72-67 as the Greyhounds snapped an eight game losing skid against the Lady Buffs...It was ENMU’s first win in Canyon in 24 tries as WT has now lost just twice on its home floor in series history (39-2)...WT tied for fifth all-time in single game shooting going a season-best 38 of 57 from the field against WNMU for a 66.7 clip... The Lady Buffs were well ahead of the school-record .706 set against Texas A&M-Kingsville on Feb. 6, 1988 as the Lady Buffs shot 70 percent or better in each of the first three quarters, but went just 3 of 12 shooting in the fourth quarter...In addition, WT scored 25 or more points in the first three stanzas, but just 12 in the fourth... Junior Sydney Walton had a career game going 10 of 10 from the field, 2 of 2 from range and 2 of 2 from the line for a career-best 24 points leading four players in double figures...WT dominated the paint, outscoring WNMU a season-high 56-6 in points in the paint, while recording 23 assists and forcing 11 steals...WNMU entered allowing just over 11 turnovers a game, but the Lady Buffs forced 16 Mustang miscues...WT had its second game of 9 of 18 from beyond the arc as the offense began to heat up...Against ENMU WT went just 19 of 46 from the field and 4 of 10 from beyond the arc and led by as many as 12, but was outscored 47-35 in the second half falling by five, 72-67...Senior Sasha Watson had a season-high 23 points leading three Lady Buffs in double figures, but ENMU went 11 of 21 from range to pull out the upset...It marked just the sixth LSC loss since Feb. 9, 2013 during the regular season (50-6) as WT is 351-69 all-time in Lone Star Conference play...It also was just the second home conference loss (26-2) during the league regular season during that span...WT head coach Kristen Mattio now is 14-4 in regular season league games...The 100 points against WNMU marked the first time reaching 100 since WT scored 111 in a heartbreaking 112-111 triple overtime loss to Angelo State last season in Canyon. Western New Mexico The Lady Mustangs tried to regroup from a tough game against West Texas A&M by coming close against UT Permian Basin. Outside of a career-game offensively by Jordan Gutierrez, Jade Botelho led in rebounds with 11 and was second on the team in scoring averaging 8.0 per game. Gutierrez poured in a career-high 36 points against UT Permian Basin, which is the top scoring game in the Lone Star Conference so far this season and is the third-highest total in all of Division II this year entering this weekend. She made 14-19 from the field (74), 5-6 (83) from three and added a 3-4 effort at the foul line against the Falcons. In addition, she had five rebounds, two assists and a steal in 38 minutes. Against nationally-ranked West Texas A&M Gutierrez tallied 14 points, making three three-pointers, along with three rebounds, three assists and three steals. She averaged 25 points, 55 percent on field goals, 62 percent from three-point range, 4.0 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 2.0 steals per game. Previous scoring highs for Gutierrez came last year when she tallied 29 and 28 points in a game. She led the team in steals with four and was third in rebounds with eight, grabbing seven on the defensive end.