SAN ANTONIO — UTSA wrapped up its annual Thanksgiving Classic with a 79-50 victory against Houston Baptist on Sunday afternoon at the Convocation Center.
The Roadrunners (2-2) won both their games over the weekend and three players were named to the all-tournament team with Niaga Mitchell-Cole named the Most Valuable Player. Tesha Smith and Akunna Elonu joined Mitchell-Cole on the five-member team.
Mitchell-Cole led five players in double figures with 14 points and she added five rebounds. Alexus Dukes and Carlie Heineman both tallied 13 points, while Smith contributed 11 and Elonu scored 10.
UTSA’s second victory of the season came after an early back-and-forth battle with the Huskies (2-3). Two ties and four lead changes occurred in the first period before the Roadrunners could gain a comfortable lead over the Huskies. UTSA ended the first quarter on an 8-0 run to take an 18-11 advantage.
Houston Baptist struggled on the floor, shooting 31 percent (19-of-62) from the field, but the Huskies were 7-of-11 from 3-point range.
The Roadrunners were 32-of-60 from the floor and held a 37-35 rebounding edge.
UTSA continued its scoring onslaught throughout the remainder of the contest and held its largest lead of 34 in the third quarter with 33 ticks remaining.
Houston Baptist was led by Rachel Arthur's 15 points and she added three assists, a rebound and one steal.
UTSA will hit the road for its next two contests beginning with a Thursday, Dec. 3, matchup at I-35 rival Texas State (2-4). Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. at Strahan Coliseum.