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#17 TEXAS A&M-COMMERCE TOPS TWU 73-65
Box Score
 DENTON, Texas (January 2) - Texas A&M-Commerce’s starting frontcourt duo of Katedria Mosley and Dominee Evans combined for 20 points and 23 rebounds to help the Lions defeat the Texas Woman’s University Pioneers 73-65 on Wednesday night at Kitty Magee Arena in Denton.
Mosley, a senior forward, scored eight points and grabbed a game-high 13 rebounds. The Idabel, Oklahoma native also blocked five shots, just one short of the A&M-Commerce single-game record. Evans, a senior forward from Fort Worth, tallied 12 points and pulled down 10 rebounds. The majority of her points came from the charity stripe as she converted all 10 of her free throw attempts.
The strong play in the paint from Mosley, Evans, and junior forward Nola Taylor (seven points, seven rebounds) enabled the Lions to overcome a fast start by the Pioneers. TWU junior post player Renee Renz scored seven points in the first 3:51 of the game to spark her team to an early 13-4 lead. A&M-Commerce answered the Pioneers’ push with a 14-2 run of their own to go on top 18-15 midway through the first half. The Lions would go on to take a 33-28 lead into the locker room at halftime.
The Pioneers were unable to battle back in the second half, due in large part to the foul trouble of their top two scorers for the season, Renz and senior forward Savannah Thompson. Both players were whistled for their fourth fouls of the game in the first four minutes of the second half. With the bulk of the TWU offense sitting on the bench, A&M-Commerce stretched their lead to thirteen points, 54-41, with 11:41 left to play. TWU could not get any closer than seven points before the horn sounded to end the game.
“That really hurt us,” said TWU head coach Beth Jillson of the Pioneers’ foul trouble. “We were right there with them, going back and forth, and then we lose Renee and Savannah for the majority of the second half. Our kids that were in the game stepped up and played well, but we just couldn’t pull back in front.”
Without the services of Renz and Thompson for the better part of the game (both players would eventually foul out), TWU struggled mightily on the backboards. A&M-Commerce outrebounded the Pioneers by a 54-31 margin. Twenty of the Lions rebounds came on the offensive end of the court.
“The rebound margin was the difference in the game,” said Jillson. “That’s the most boards we’ve given up all season long. It’s extremely difficult to win when you allow that many second shots.”
Despite playing just 17 minutes, Renz finished as the Pioneers’ high scorer in the game with 14 points. The effort of reserve post player Amanda Day (pictured) was the other highlight in the loss for TWU. The junior from Houston, Texas registered career-highs in minutes played (26), points (13), rebounds (10), blocked shots (1), and steals (3).
“Amanda was phenomenal tonight,” explained Jillson. “She came off the bench and played terrific. I’m so proud of the way she’s improved this season and I’m hoping that she can become a consistent contributor for this team.”
The loss drops the Pioneers’ season record to 4-7. A&M-Commerce, the 17th ranked team in this week’s USA Today/ESPN NCAA Division II Top 25 Coaches’ Poll, extended their winning streak to five games and improved to 9-2 on the season.
TWU’s next game will be on Thursday, January 10, at 7:00 p.m. when they travel to Edmond, Oklahoma to play the University of Central Oklahoma Bronchos.
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