SAN ANTONIO – The UTSA women's basketball team (4-18, 2-8 C-USA) dropped the back-end of a two-game home stand with a 66-53 setback against UTEP (14-8, 5-4 C-USA) on Sunday afternoon at the Convocation Center.
UTSA led by one after a quarter and tied the Miners three times in the second frame, but UTEP secured the lead in the second half as it out-scored the Roadrunners, 39-29. Sophomore Marie Benson led UTSA with 20 points in the setback, while senior Crystal Chidomere and sophomore Tija Hawkins joined her with 14 and 11 points, respectively. Najala Howell led three Miners in double figures with 23 points, including 14 in the fourth quarter.
TURNING POINTS
UTEP opened the game with a 7-2 run, but a relentless UTSA defense cooled the Miners offensively with back-to-back steals from Benson and senior Carlie Heineman. The Roadrunners took advantage to score the final six points of the frame and lead, 10-9, through 10 minutes of action. UTSA continued it's run early in the second quarter to make it 12-9, but three consecutive UTEP triples pushed the Miners ahead, 18-14. The two sides traded scores over the next several minutes, with UTEP eventually ending up on top, 27-24, heading to the break.
UTSA used a jumper from Benson to get within on (27-26) at 9:22 in the third quarter, but UTEP used five consecutive points from Katrina Zec to cushion its lead. The Roadrunners kept UTEP's lead to single digits through the remainder of the third quarter, but 10 straight points from Howell, pushed the Miners up by as many as 14 in the final frame.
News and Notes
- The Miners shot 43.9 percent (25-57) from the floor, including 6-16 (37.5 percent) from distance while the Roadrunners shot 33.8 percent (23-68) from the floor and zero percent from 3-point range.
- UTEP outrebounded UTSA, 47-29, including 10 defensive rebounds from Howell.
- The Roadrunners forced 21 UTEP turnovers and led the Miners, 20-10, in points off turnovers.
- UTSA secured a season-high 13-team steals, including six from Benson.
- The Roadrunners were 7-for-8 from the line, registering a season-high 87.5 free throw percentage.
What's Ahead
The Roadrunners are back on the road as they visit Marshall on Thursday, Feb. 4 and Charlotte on Saturday, Feb. 6.