Box Score Las Vegas, N.M. - The NMHU Women's Basketball team lost to RMAC opponent UC-Colorado Springs 96-92. The game was a tale of two halves because the Mountain Lions looked to dominate the game in the first half, leading by as much as 25 points at the 10:45 mark, but the Cowgirls having four players in double digits made the Mountain Lions work for the win by stepping up in a big way in the second half of play.
The Mountain Lions quickly scored four unanswered points after the tip off. UCCS seemed to be firing on all cylinders jumping out to an amazing lead 45-26 with 4:14 left in the first half but the Cowgirls answered the surge in the second half and responded by cutting into a 22 point lead going into half time.
After the break UCCS came out looking to extend the lead. The Mountain Lions had NMHU on the defensive for the first few minutes of the second half and fought to keep the game out of the Cowgirls reach. The Cowgirls' fought back after a tip-in by
China Smith to make the score 89-77. The Mountain Lions tried to keep their composure to fight off the Cowgirls' run. The NMHU Cowgirls were able close the gap to three points with 1:16 to go but they were unable to put the ball through the iron. Turnovers and missed lay-ups cost the Cowgirls to fall UCCS Mountain Lions 96-92.
The Cowgirls struggled with ball control in the first half, turning the ball over six times while the Mountain Lions had zero. The Mountain Lions shot 7-14 in the first half from behind the three point stripe compared to the Cowgirls who made 3-10.
The Cowgirls managed to win the turnover battle in the second half by forcing 10 turnovers and only giving the ball up five times. They were able to score 15 points off of the turnovers while allowing six to the Mountain Lions. The Cowgirls worked relentlessly in the second half and outscored the third ranked team in the RMAC 44-24 in the paint, but it was not going to be enough to overcome the deficit and when the final whistle had blown it was UCCS that edged out the victory.
With the loss the Cowgirls, led by Head Coach Tiffany Darling, fall to a 3-2 record in the RMAC and 3-6 in overall play.
Junior guard,
Alyssa Lopez showed why she has earned the nickname “The Silent Assassin,” by quietly racking up an outstanding 20 points in her 40 minutes on the court. Lopez exploded in the first half with 12 points, two assists and three rebounds. In the second half, Lopez struggled to get into rhythm with only six points, shooting 3-6 from the field. Overall on the night she shot 6-12 from the field, 1-3 from behind the three-point arc, and 7-8 from the charity stripe.
The second leading scorer for tonight's game is junior guard
Indre Mikelenaite who had 18 points, going 8-14 from the field. Mikelenaite also added in three assists and one steal to her night's totals.
Rounding out the top scores for the Cowgirls are
Haley Grossman and
Kate Cryderman both adding 14 points. Grossman shot 6-8 from the field and Cyderman shot 7-10 from the field.
The Cowgirls will continue conference action again, on 12/15, as they host the Thunderwolves of CSU-Pueblo, in Las Vegas, N.M. The Thunderwolves are currently ranked second in the RMAC with a 4-1 conference record and 7-2 in overall play. The game is scheduled for a 6 pm tip-off time, with the Cowboys taking to the court shortly after the completion of the women's game. If you can't make it to the John A. Wilson Complex to watch your Cowgirls in action, you can click HERE to watch the game
LIVE on the America One network.
GO COWGIRLS!!!
