DENTON, Texas (March 16, 2025) – How SWEET it is!

For the second straight season, the Texas Woman's basketball is Sweet Sixteen bound.

No. 1 TWU (33-1) defeated the No. 5 seed Eastern New Mexico (21-10), 71-48, on Saturday night in Kitty Magee Arena to advance to the 2025 NCAA South Central Regional Tournament Championship game.

On Semifinal Saturday, the Pioneers jumped out to a 22-point halftime advantage and maintained the momentum throughout the second half to clinch the semifinal win, defeating the Greyhounds by 23 points, which matched their largest margin of victory in an NCAA South Central Regional Tournament game from Friday night.

The win marked the Pioneers' 10th victory by 20 or more points and 14th time holding their opponent to under 50 points this season. The Pioneers never trailed and were never tied across the 40 minutes of action – marking the seventh wire-to-wire win of the season, third in postseason action and second straight in the NCAA Tournament.

TWU locked down on defense in front of the home crowd in KMA. They hold the Greyhounds to just nine points in the second quarter and six points in the fourth quarter, marking their 29th and 30th quarters this season holding their opponent to less than 10 points in a quarter. The 48 points marked ENMU's lowest point total of the season.

The Pioneers utilized their energy on defense to propel them to success on offense, as TWU shot 50% from the field – their seventh game this season shooting 50% or more from the field. It marked the second highest field goal percentage allowed by the Greyhounds this season.

IMPACT PLAYERS

• Four players finished the game in double-digits. Ashley Ingram led the way with her 16th double-double of the season, scoring 15 points and grabbing 11 rebounds. She also dished out five assists and recorded two steals.
• Averee Kleinhans finished with 13 points on 5-of-8 from the field and a perfect 3-for-3 from the free throw line. She also dished out three assists in the win.
• Jada Celsur brought the energy in her 18 minutes of action. Off the bench, she scored 11 points on 4-of-8 from the field.
• On 5-of-9 from the field, Leila Patel finished with 11 points and also added one assist and one block. 
• Scout Huffman grabbed five rebounds in the win and scored seven points.
• On the defensive side of the ball, Ariyanna Hines matched her career high with four steals. She also dished out two assists.  

PIONEER POWER MOMENTS

• The Pioneers scored 40 points in the paint and finished with 34 bench points. They also forced the Greyhounds to turn the ball over 17 times for 18 TWU points. While the Pioneers shot 50% from the field, they knocked down just two three pointers, courtesy of Ingram, but the Pioneers' strength in the paint led them to the win.
• TWU dished out 13 assists and held ENMU to just four assists in the game.
• The Pioneers opened the game strong with 26 points in the first quarter and held the Greyhounds to just 11 points. TWU opened the night with a 5-0 run. They found their first double-digit lead at the 3:44 mark of the first quarter off a made free throw by Ingram.
• Kleinhans subbed in at the 4:22 mark of the first and scored nine points to close the quarter and put TWU ahead by 15, 26-11.
• With the Pioneer faithful cheering them on, TWU continued to ride the momentum into the second quarter. They locked down on defense and held the Greyhounds to just nine points, while TWU added 16 points.
• Ingram opened the quarter with her second three of the night to push the lead to 16, 29-13. Then, Patel would connect on a jumper after a TWU offensive board to give the Pioneers their first 20-point lead of the night, 33-13.
• With 1:36 left in the half, Celsur ignited the crowd with a strong and-one and then followed it up with a another heavily contested layup, as TWU went into the halftime break ahead by 22, 42-20.
• Following the halftime break, the Pioneers came out of the break a bit slow, as ENMU would cut the lead to 11 with 1:53 left in the quarter. Nevertheless, TWU never got frazzled or uncomposed, rather they continued to stay the course.
• Ahead by 11, 53-42, heading into the fourth quarter, TWU righted the energy in KMA and jumped out to a 10-0 run. In the final quarter of action, the Pioneers would outscore the Greyhounds 18-6.
• Hadyn Collie and Gionna Carr would connect on the final two baskets of the night for the Pioneers, as the joy of moving on to the championship game settled into the arena.
• TWU would match their largest victory in an NCAA South Central Regional Tournament game in the win, 71-48.

HEAR FROM THE PIONEERS

Hear from Head Coach Beth Jillson, senior Ariyanna Hines and senior Jada Celsur here.

NEXT UP

The Pioneers will meet the No. 2 seed and #10/11 in the country Lubbock Christian in the 2025 NCAA South Central Regional Tournament Title game on Monday, March 16 at 7 p.m. in Kitty Magee Arena.

The winner will advance to the 2025 NCAA Elite Eight Tournament.