Feb. 1, 2007

Box Score

KINGSVILLE, Texas - Led by three in double figures, the No. 10 West Texas A&M women's basketball team was victorious on Thursday over Texas A&M-Kingsville, 80-55 at Kleberg Bank Court.

WTAMU took a 41-28 lead into the locker room on 16-of-25 shooting from the field and a 6-of-8 shooting performance from outside. The Lady Buff defense also picked up two steals and caused nine Kingsville turnovers in the first half.

Individually for WTAMU in the first stanza, sophomore Emily Brister led the offensive charge with 17 points and was a perfect 4-of-4 from 3-point range. Senior Natalie Wheeler also helped lead the Lady Buffs as she scored eight points.

To open the second half, WTAMU went on a 10-1 run to extend its lead to 51-29, on 4-of-5 shooting. During the run, Wheeler continued to her hot shooting, contributing five points.

For the game Wheeler was second on the team with 15 points, while Brister led the way with a game-high 24 points. Rounding out those double figures was sophomore Courtney Lee, who chipped in with 13.

The Lady Buff defense also stepped up, forcing a game total of 20 turnovers to go along with 11 steals. Kingsville meanwhile forced WTAMU into only 16 turnovers, while picking up just three steals.

With the win, the Lady Buffs ended the Javelinas three game winning streak, and improved their record to 18-3 overall and 7-0 in the Lone Star Conference South Division. Kingsville falls to 8-11 in its 2006-07 campaign and 3-3 in the LSC South. WTAMU will be back in action on Saturday at Texas Woman's in Denton, Texas. The game is slated to begin at 7 p.m.