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Feb. 4, 2009

Box Score

Canyon, Texas – West Texas A&M defense held Eastern New Mexico to four field goals in the second half en route to an 87-49 win in Lone Star Conference South Division action Wednesday night at the First United Bank Center.

The win lifts WTAMU to 18-3 overall, 6-0 LSC South, while ENMU falls to 9-15, 0-6 in LSC South action. The victory also keeps the Lady Buffs atop the LSC South Division standings.

The Lady Buffs broke open what was a tight game with a 16-5 run to over the first four minutes of the second half. Courtney Lee had five points during the run, while Joni Unruh sank six free throws to push what was a 33-25 halftime lead to a 49-30 cushion.

“I thought we were flat, defensively, in the first half,” said WT head coach Krista Gerlich. “Our press did a much better job in the second half and we hit the boards better.”

The Lady Buffs continued to take advantage of Zia missed shots and turnovers, turning them into layups and free throws on the offensive end.

By the 10 minute mark of the second half, they had pushed the score to 23 points at 59-36. By the five minute mark, they had upped the gap to 30 points, largely on their defense and rebounding.

Defensively, the Lady Buffs held ENMU to just 23.8 percent from the floor in the second half and for the game allowed just a 31.0 field goal percentage. The Zias also tallied 24 turnovers, with 12 coming from Lady Buff steals.

WT shot 42.2 percent from the field and made 8-12 three-pointers for a 66.7 percent clip. The Lady Buffs pulled down 48 rebounds to the Zias 30.

“We were able to play 12 players tonight,” Gerlich said. “I’ve always thought that when we go to our bench, we don’t have much of a drop-off on the floor and tonight that proved to be the case. I though everyone competed well.”

Leading the Lady Buffs in scoring was Emily Brister (senior, guard, Amarillo, Texas) with 17 points, five rebounds, four assists, and two steals. She was followed by Courtney Lee (senior, guard, Arlington, Texas) with 13 points, five rebounds, three assists, and two steals. Jamie Dreiling (senior, forward, Lake Kiowa, Texas) led all rebounders with nine boards and also registered nine points.

The Zias were paced by Cat Clay’s 16-point, five rebound performance. Til-Lois Fifer also hit double digits, scoring 11 points and grabbing a team-high eight rebounds. For the game, the Zias hit just 31.0 percent from the floor.

The Lady Buffs and the Zias meet again this Saturday, Feb. 7, in Portales, N.M. Tip-off at Greyhound Arena is set for 7 p.m. CST.