DENTON, Texas (Jan. 14, 2016) – Texas Woman's University basketball travels to face Lone Star Conference member Texas A&M-Commerce Saturday at 2 p.m. inside The Field House.
 
TEXAS WOMAN'S (10-5, 3-4 Lone Star) at TEXAS A&M-COMMERCE (10-4, 5-2 Lone Star)
Saturday, Jan. 14 at 2 p.m.
Commerce, Texas (The Field House)
 
About the Pioneers
Back-to-back losses for TWU ties a season-high losing streak as the team looks to break the cycle against Texas A&M-Commerce. The Pioneer defense ranks third in the Lone Star Conference allowing 61.9 points per game. Kenesha Saygo ranks third in the LSC in scoring (17.0) and free throw attempts (70), fourth in field goal percentage (.423) and fifth in free throws made (51). Alexis Nezianya is ninth in the league with 13 blocks.
 
About the Lions
The 10-4 start by TAMUC ties the best season start in program history. The Lions are 5-2 in conference play with the pair of defeats coming against league-leader Eastern New Mexico and then-undefeated Angelo State.
The Lions lead the LSC in free throw attempts and rebounds while the scoring is evenly distributed with seven players averaging over seven points, spearheaded by Artaejah Gay's 13.5 ppg.
 
History amongst Texas Woman's and Texas A&M-Commerce
The Pioneers hold a 42-34 all-time advantage over the Lions with the squads splitting a pair of meetings the past three seasons. TWU has set two individual game records while playing the Lions, as Brooke Shepherd knocked down 10 three-pointers six seasons ago, and Renee Renz tallied 23 rebounds during the 2008-09 season.
 
Last meeting between TWU and TAMUC
COMMERCE, Texas (Feb. 4, 2016) – The Pioneers had three players set new career high point totals but it wasn't enough as they fell to the host Texas A&M-Commerce, 88-78. With the loss TWU is now 17-6 overall and 7-4 in the Lone Star Conference.
Junior Deja Pointer led four players in double figures with a career-high 19 points. She erased her previous high of 18 points set last season on the same floor in Commerce, TX. Sophomore Alexis Nezianya also scored a career-high 15 points while freshman Bri'anna Gray came off the bench and added a new career-best 10 points. Junior Emily Spector added 11 points and a team-high eight rebounds off the bench while junior Erin Maxwell finished with nine points.
 
Pioneers fall at Tarleton State
STEPHENVILLE, Texas (Jan. 12, 2017) – Kenesha Saygo scored a game-high 20 points for Texas Woman's University, but the Pioneers struggled overall from the field in a 65-57 loss to Tarleton State Thursday night inside Wisdom Gym.
TWU (10-5, 3-4 LSC) shot 19-of-59 in the contest compared to 24-of-52 from TSU (6-8, 5-3 LSC). The Pioneers had a good showing from the free throw line by hitting 17-of-22 and forced 17 TexAnn turnovers while committing just nine. Kara Mitchell recorded 10 points, Morgan Easley added nine and Alexis Nezianya contributed six points and nine rebounds.
Mitchell sparked the offense early with a coast-to-coast layup and a short corner jumper, and Nezianya scored underneath for a 6-2 Pioneer lead. Back-to-back three-pointers by Saygo pushed TWU ahead 19-9 before the TexAnns responded with five straight points to close the quarter to a 19-14 Pioneer advantage.
Deja Pointer knocked down a jumper to put TWU up six early on in the second quarter, but TSU again produced a 5-0 run to make it a one-point contest. The Pioneers bumped the margin up to 25-20 on two Easley free throws and a Nezianya layup, but the TexAnns turned their deficit into a 26-25 lead halfway through the period and finished the first half with a layup with four seconds remaining to go up 32-28.
TSU drilled a three to open the third quarter, but Mitchell rattled off four straight to pull the Pioneers to within three. Another bucket by Mitchell cut the margin to 42-41 at the 5:06 mark, but TWU was unable to score again in the period while the TexAnns added six points for a 48-41 lead heading into the final period.
TSU extended their lead to 13 within the first minutes of the fourth before Emily Spector made a jumper on an out-of-bounds play and hit two free throws, and Saygo added a pair from the line to cut the deficit to 56-49 with 5:58 to play. In the final minutes, a basket and two free throws by the TexAnns pushed the lead to 11 as the Pioneers were unable to counter.