COMMERCE, Texas (Feb. 25) – TWU sophomore guard Deja Pointer came off the bench and scored a career-high 18 points to lead the Pioneers to a 63-53 road win at Texas A&M-Commerce in the Pioneers' final regular season game.  With the win, TWU improved to 15-12 on the season and 8-8 in the Lone Star Conference.
 
Pointer's game-high point total came by shooting 3-for-7 from the floor and 11-for-14 from the free-throw line.  TWU sophomore Kenesha Saygo also reached double digits in scoring with 14 points and added a team-best eight rebounds.  Sophomore Erin Maxwell also cleared eight rebounds for the Pioneers.
 
The Pioneers started the game slow and fell behind by 12 points, 20-8, halfway through the first half.  TWU regrouped and went on a 13-4 run to make it a four-point game at 4:39 mark.  The Pioneers continued their run and closed out the half outscoring A&M-Commerce 11-5 to take a 32-29 halftime lead.
 
The Lions came out of the locker room and started the second half on a 6-0 run to go back on top 35-32.  TWU responded with 10 straight points to take a 42-35 lead at 11:50 mark.  Leading 48-44 with six minutes left on the clock, the Pioneers went on an 8-2 run to push the lead to double digits.  A&M-Commerce scored four straight points to make a six-point game, 56-50, at 1:51 mark but TWU knocked down 7 of 8 free throws in the final minute to seal the win.
 
The Pioneers' bench once again contributed mightily to the win by scoring 38 of the team's 63 points.  TWU also outscored the Lions 23-12 from the free throw line.  The Pioneers' defense held A&M-Commerce to 30.2 percent shooting including 25.0 percent in the second half.
 
"We did a great job finishing the first half to take the lead at the break," said TWU head coach Beth Jillson.  "I am really proud of the way Deja stepped up.  She was aggressive getting to the rim.  This is a good road win to close out the regular season.  We will carry this momentum into the conference tournament next week and build on it."
 
The Pioneers will now have a week off before playing in the 2015 Lone Star Conference Championship Tournament on Mar. 4-7 at the Allen Event Center in Allen, TX.  The seeding, opponents, and the game times will be determined following the remaining LSC games on Saturday, Feb. 28.