DENTON, Texas (Feb. 12, 2026) - Now ranked second in the nation, Texas Woman's basketball continues to grind their way through the second half of the regular season, holding their place atop the Lone Star Conference standings with a 70-51 win over the Oklahoma Christian Eagles tonight at Kitty Magee Arena.

For the fourth straight game, TWU (21-1, 15-0) entered halftime with a single-digit lead as OCU (9-13, 5-10) matched point for point through the first 20 minutes. However, as has been the case in three of the past four games, the Pioneers' offense rallied in the second half to pull away by double digits.

The difference maker of the game was rebounding, with the Pioneers recording 30 defensive rebounds for the sixth time this season, two more than the Eagles had in total. The win tonight is the Pioneers' ninth straight against OCU and moves the current win streak to 20, marking the third time in four seasons TWU has reached this mark.

IMPACT PLAYERS

• Gabby Elliott led TWU in scoring with 15 points, shooting 4-for-8 from the field and 7-for-9 from the free throw line. The senior added 12 rebounds and set a new season high with six assists.

• Julie Kasonga recorded her third double-digit scoring effort tonight with 14 points. The true freshman shot 6-for-9 from the field and sank her first and second career free throw attempts. Kasonga also set a season high in rebounds, tallying six.

• Avery McConnell tallied nine points in the win, shooting 4-for-5 from the field and sinking a three-pointer. The junior also tied a season-high mark with four rebounds in the contest.

PIONEER POWER MOMENTS

• The Pioneer offense started the game hot, opening with a 9-0 scoring run that ended with 6:24 on the clock. The OCU defense would begin to slow the game's pace down, however, with TWU scoring only six points following the opening run amidst a trading of baskets. After an Eagles trey brought the game within one, Elliott closed out the opening period with a pair of free throws to inch the Pioneer lead ahead to 15-12.

• A pair of layups by McConnell and Kasonga to open the second period spotted TWU a seven-point lead at 19-12, but the Eagles defense continued to present challenges. The Pioneers' longest scoring streak of the second period was five, and TWU did open up its first 10-point lead off a Madi Lumsden free throw to make the score 30-20 with 5:04 remaining. However, OCU continued to battle, and TWU took a five-point lead at 39-34 into the half.

• The third period opened with an OCU trey to make it a one-basket game at 39-37, looking as though the game would continue its close nature. This would be the only points scored by the Eagles in the period, however, as TWU exploded for a 13-point scoring run lasting through the frame. This marks the 19th time this season the Pioneers have held their opponent to single-digit points in a full frame.

• The fourth period began with a Jaylee Moss trey to increase the lead to 18 at 55-37 thirty seconds in, adding to the game-changing scoring run from the previous period. Kasonga scored eight of her 10 points tonight in the fourth, including sinking her first and second career free throws at the 3:56 mark to bring the score to 65-46. A layup by the true freshman with 40 seconds remaining closed the scoring, securing the 70-51 win.

POST GAME INTERVIEW 

Hear from Julie Kasonga after the win: https://youtu.be/6GMEOn-8O7M 

NEXT UP
The Pioneers close out their four-game homestand Saturday afternoon, playing host to back-to-back teams from Oklahoma when the Cameron Aggies enter KMA for a 2 p.m. tipoff.

-PIONEERS-