Thursday, November 30, 2017

PORTALES, NM —UT Permian Basin (2-5; LSC 0-1) hit 71.4 percent from outside the arc in the opening quarter and took an 18-point lead in the second half. Led by Daeshi McCants' first double double of the season, the Eastern New Mexico University women's basketball team (3-3; LSC 0-1)closed to within three points, before dropping a 68-63 decision to the visiting Falcons.

Thursday night's contest at Greyhound Arena was the Lone Star Conference opener for both teams. The contest was sponsored by U.S. Bank.

Inside the Series

• The loss moved ENMU to 3-2 against the Falcons
• Eastern's three-game win streak against UTPB was snapped
• The contest marked the first time the Falcons had defeated Eastern since a 67-58 decision in Lubbock, Texas on November 28, 2014

 
Beyond the Box Score

• McCants' double double was the sixth of her career
• Eastern has registered three straight games with double doubles, all from different players

 
The Key Runs

• Jackie Perez drained back-to-back treys to open the game, as UTPB started the contest with a 17-4 run
• The teams went back and forth until the Falcons held a 30-17 lead late in the second quarter
• A pair of McCants free throws followed by five straight points from Jasmine Hotchkins cut the deficit to 30-24 with 2:45 left in the half
• An 8-0 UTPB run stretched into the second half to give the visiting team a 43-26 lead on a fastbreak from Kayla Bretherton
• The Hounds cut into the deficit on a McCants trey, but the Falcons pushed their advantage to 18 points with 6:54 left in the third quarter
• Eastern answered with a trey from Brandi Gomez to spark an 18-6 surge which pulled them within six points (53-47) on a layup from Kaylee Edgemon
• UT Permian Basin pushed their lead back to nine on a number of occasions before a Hotchkins trey ignited a 9-4 Greyhound run which pulled Eastern to within 66-63 on a pair of Mikaehla Connor free throws with nine seconds left

 
Inside the Box Score

• The Falcons capitalized on 31 Greyhound turnovers and held a 35-19 edge in points off turnovers
• The Hounds out rebounded the Falcons by a 40-28 margin
• UTPB held a .474-.304 edge in three-point shooting percentage.
• McCants led ENMU with 11 points, 12 rebounds, five assists, three blocks and two steals
• Gomez and Edgemon each had a team-high 13 points
• Hotchkins added 11 points
• Connor finished with seven points and five boards
• Bretherton paced UTPB with 16 points and six assists

Up Next

• The Eastern New Mexico University women's basketball team will host fifth-ranked West Texas A&M on Saturday, in a game sponsored by Dr. Peter L. Thompson, DDS
• The contest is scheduled to tip off at 2 p.m. MT.