KINGSVILLE, Texas (Feb. 18) – TWU junior
Taylor Nolan came off the bench and scored 10 points to help the Pioneers to a 66-55 road win at Texas A&M-Kingsville. With the win TWU improved to 19-7 on the season and 9-5 in the Lone Star Conference.
Junior
Kenesha Saygo led all players with 14 points while sophomore
Alexis Nezianya added nine points and cleared a game-high 11 rebounds. Sophomores
Morgan Easley and
Jayzhia Softly also came off the bench and scored eight and six points respectively. Nolan shot 5-for-7 from the floor while Nezianya went perfect 4-for-4.
The Pioneers opened the game on an 8-1 run but Texas A&M-Kingsville used an 11-4 run to even the score at 12-12. TWU scored the final basket of the quarter to take a 14-12 lead after one.
The Pioneers outscored TAMUK 6-2 early in the second quarter to go on top 20-14 but the Javelinas chipped away to make it 21-18. TWU outscored the home team 9-3 in the final three minutes to take a 30-21 lead at the break.
In the third quarter both teams traded baskets early before the Pioneers went on a 12-3 run to turn a nine-point lead into an 18-point advantage with 1:49 left on the clock. The Javelinas closed out the quarter on a 6-0 run to make it 49-37 after three.
Texas A&M-Kingsville carried the momentum into the fourth and cut the deficit to eight points, 51-43, with a 6-2 run. Both teams traded baskets for the next four minutes until TWU used a 6-0 run to push the lead to 15 points, 66-51, before winning by 11 points.
The Pioneers outrebounded TAMUK, 43-37, and had a 36-20 advantage in the paint. After shooting 30.0 percent in the first two quarters, TWU hit 55.2 percent of its shots in the third and fourth to finish the game with a 42.4 percent.
"We had a lot of different players step up after we got into foul trouble early," said TWU head coach
Beth Jillson. "We are excited to be back at home for our last two games of the regular season. We need a big crowd to help us finish out the season strong."
The Pioneers will return to Denton to host Angelo State on Sunday, Feb. 21. Tip-off is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. in Kitty Magee Arena.
