Box Score The NMHU Cowgirls Basketball won their home rematch against the Aggies of Oklahoma Panhandle State University, 118-106. The game was a shootout that saw the teams run up and down the court for 40 minutes of high tempo action. The Aggies held the Cowgirls at bay for much of the first half of play, thanks to their 50% shooting percentage from three point range, but the Cowgirls were able to regain their composure to take a six point lead into the half. The Cowgirls tightened up their defense in the second half and shot an impressive 60% from the field to get a comfortable double digit lead. The Aggies never gave up and they came storming back in the second half thanks to some good defense and clutch free-throw shooting down the stretch. Ultimately the Cowgirls were just too much for the Aggies, thanks to some outstanding individual efforts by Cowgirl stars
Alyssa Lopez,
Whitley Coca, and
China Smith. When the final buzzer sounded the Cowgirls had won the shootout by 12 points. The Cowgirls, led by Head Coach Tiffany Darling, were able to hold off a fast paced Aggies' offense to extend their overall record to 3-0.
Neither team was able to net a basket for almost two minutes after the tip off, but that changed as the Cowgirls made their first basket with 18:14 remaining in the first period. The Aggies showed their outside shooting skill by answering back with a three point shot. The Cowgirls would regain the lead with a layup, but the Aggies hit another three pointer and would take the lead, putting the Cowgirls on the defensive. The game quickly picked up in tempo and both teams were flying up and down the court in an offensive showdown. The Aggies outside shots were a constant thorn for the Cowgirls as they controlled much of the first half action, but the Cowgirls shot 50% from the field in the half to stay in the game, and the Aggies biggest lead was only five points. The Cowgirls tied the game up with only 1:07 remaining in the half and some nice defensive play saw them go on a 6-0 run in the last minute of the half to take the 52-46 lead into the locker room.
The Cowgirls came out for the second half determined to shutdown the Aggies outside game and quickly ran up a 20 point lead with 17:26 remaining in the game. The teams exchanged shots but the Cowgirls were able to see their lead extended to 23 points with only 9:23 left on the clock. The Cowgirls looked to be in good shape but the Aggies would not quit and they were able to cut the Cowgirls' lead to only nine with 5:29 remaining. The Cowgirls rose to the challenge and buckled down to finish out the game. The Cowgirls were able to hold off the determined effort of the Aggies in the final five minutes of the game to take the victory by 12 points, with a final score of 118-106.
Alyssa Lopez led all scorers in the game with an impressive 33 points. Lopez was a key factor in the Cowgirls' ability to stay with the Aggies in the first half of play as she ran up and down the court to bolster the attack. She shot 11-20 from the field and made 10 of her 15 free-throw attempts. Lopez added nine rebounds, six assists, and four steals in her 31 minutes of well rounded play on the court.
The Cowgirls' star point guard,
Whitley Coca, grabbed her first double-double of the season. Coca's leadership was a big part of the Cowgirls' ability to maintain their composure in the face of the scoring onslaught. She scored 29 points and grabbed a team high 10 rebounds in 32 minutes of playing time. Coca shot 11-18 from the field, 6-7 from the charity stripe, and added six assists and two steals in the game.
China Smith rounded out the Cowgirls' top scorers with 21 points. Smith stepped up her game down the stretch and made some critical baskets in the second half to keep the Aggies at bay. She made 10 of her 15 field goals, nabbed eight rebounds, and contributed three steals, three assists and one blocked shot in her 26 minutes on the court.
The Cowgirls will be in action again, on 12/2, as they travel to Denver, Colo. to take on the Roadrunners of Metro State College in their first Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference showdown of the season. The Roadrunners are currently ranked third in USA Today/ESPN NCAA DII Top 25 Coaches poll and are favorites to win the RMAC this season. The game is scheduled for a 5 pm tip-off time. If you can't make it to Denver to watch your Cowgirls in action, you can click
HERE to watch the game LIVE on the America One Network.
GO COWGIRLS!!!
