Saturday, February 27, 2016
PORTALES, N.M. — A trey from
Jasmine Hotchkins staked the Eastern New Mexico University women's basketball team (10-16; LSC 5-11) to a 41-39 lead over 12
th-ranked West Texas A&M (24-3; LSC 13-3), on senior night at Greyhound Arena. The Lady Buffs managed to rally for a 64-58 Lone Star Conference win, in the regular season finale for both teams.
Eastern's seniors stepped up their games for the home finale, with
Sarah Stinnett leading the pack with a 22-point, eight-rebound performance.
Jordyn Cooper and
Brittany Gutierrez hit for nine and eight points, respectively.
Miranda Moore dished out three assists, while
Jaylyn Cooper came up with a pair of rebounds.
The Greyhounds will face second seeded Angelo State on Wednesday at 12 p.m. CT, to open play in the LSC Championships. WT will enter the field as the top seed and face Midwestern State, on Wednesday evening.
The wild game featured 11 lead changes and 11 tie scores. The Lady Buffs held decisive leads in points off turnovers (18-6) and second-chance points (18-5). Neither team was able to build a lead of more than four points in the opening half, with Stinnett and
Kassandra Harris combining for 15 points to keep the Hounds within three, 29-26 at intermission.
The Greyhounds outscored WT 15-10 in the third quarter, but were unable to build a lead, as neither team could sustain momentum. After Hotchkins trey gave ENMU its final lead, the Lady Buffs went on an 18-5 run to seize a 57-46 advantage, midway through the final quarter. Stinnett scored five straight points in a 7-0 run to close within four points, but the Lady Buffs traded free throws with ENMU down the stretch to hold on for the win.
The Greyhounds held a 42.9-35.7 percent advantage in shooting, but the Lady Buffs enjoyed a 40-27 lead on the boards. Stinnett notched her third 20-point performance in the last five games.
Eliza Martinez blocked two shots. Madison Wild had 17 points and 11 rebounds for WT.