Tuesday, January 3, 2017
SILVER CITY, NM —
Daeshi McCants opened Tuesday's Lone Star Conference contest with a three-point bucket, as the Eastern New Mexico University women's basketball team (9-3; LSC 5-0) exploded to a 16-3 lead. The Greyhounds never trailed at Drag's Court and picked up an 80-67 win over Western New Mexico University (4-8; LSC 0-5), to remain undefeated in league play.
With the win, ENMU improved to 18-5 against the Mustangs. The Hounds have won three straight in the series and seven of the last eight. The contest also marked Eastern's third-ever 5-0 start to LSC play.
The Turning Point
- WNMU closed the first quarter with an 11-2 run to pull within four points, 18-14 at intermission
- Midway through the second quarter, a Kassandra Harris free throw followed by a Brandi Gomez trey ignited a 14-5 Greyhound run which ballooned a four-point Greyhound lead to 38-25
- The Mustangs would pull no closer than 13 points the rest of the way
Beyond the Box Score
- With 11 points and 10 rebounds, McCants notched her second double double of the season and the team's fourth overall
- Eastern enjoyed a season-best +22 rebound differential and topped the 50-rebound mark for the second straight game
- For the second straight contest, Eastern scored a season-high 19 second-chance points
- With a 41-3 edge in bench points, ENMU's reserves reached the 40-point mark for the second time this season
- Eastern's 12 three-point buckets were a season high
In the Numbers
- ENMU dished out a season-best 22 assists, paced by a career-best nine from Jasmine Hotchkins
- McCants joined three players in double figures: Gomez (13 pts), Sarina Johnson (13 pts), and Harris (11 pts)
- Five Greyhounds had at least six rebounds, led by 12 from Johna McClelland
- Mikaehla Connor, Shelby Jones, and Jasmine Hotchkins each had seven points, with Connor dishing out four assists
- Johnson also had five assists
- Jordan Gutierrez paced WNMU with 24 points and six assists
Up Next
The Eastern New Mexico University women's basketball team will visit Texas Woman's University, on Saturday. Tipoff is scheduled for 1 p.m. MST.