Somewhere during a couple weeks off the game floor, the Falcons seemed to have lost their shot.
They didn’t find it in time Thursday night.
The UTPB women’s basketball team struggled from the floor in a 70-50 Lone Star Conference meeting with Cameron at the Falcon Dome.
Cameron raced ahead to a 15-point cushion by the halftime break, hitting twice as many shots from the floor in the opening two periods, on the way to downing a cold UTPB team back on the floor for the first time since mid-December.
“It was more of the same,” Falcons head coach Rae Boothe said after the loss. “We had a good break, and practice, and we thought, today, that we’d perform well, and we didn’t.”
UTPB dropped to 4-9 on the season, and 2-3 in the Lone Star Conference, while Cameron moved to 5-8, 3-2.
The Falcons opened their conference season 2-0 in late November and early December, then fell on a skid but bounced back with a win in their last outing on Dec. 19.
But UTPB couldn’t earn a second straight win Thursday, with Cameron knocking down 51.6 percent of its shots in the first half, while UTPB mustered to sink just 26.7-percent.
UTPB put down 8 of 30 first-half shots, while Cameron needed just one more shot to knock down twice as many, hitting 16 of 31 in the first half.
That difference was enough to put Cameron up 39-24 by the break, and the Falcons never truly threatened the Aggies’ lead in the second half.
Kayla Bretherton led UTPB with 12 points, and Jasmine Spriggins added 11, but UTPB was outrebounded by 24. Cameron pulled down 52 boards as UTPB hauled in 28.
In past victories, the Falcons’ smaller lineup has managed to overcome a difference in rebounding with help from its conference-leading turnover margin and a league-best mark in team steals.
Thursday, though, UTPB managed 11 steals while offering up eight on the other end. Cameron finished with 25 turnovers, but UTPB gave away 16.
“It’s embarassing,” Boothe said of that rebounding margin. “If we can keep that, really, within eight, and then force 10 more turnovers, then we’d make up for it.
“That, plus our inability to shoot well, results in 20-point losses.”
The Falcons will look to put together a better performance at home Saturday against one of the conference’s best teams in Midwestern State. Midwestern State is 4-1 in the conference, with only one league loss, coming to nationally ranked West Texas A&M on Thursday.
UTPB will then step out of league play for the last time for the team’s final nonconference game of the season on Monday at home against Arlington Baptist.
“They really look upset this time, so I hope in practice tomorrow we’ll be a little angry, and on Saturday against a really good team,” Boothe said.
CAMERON (5-8 overall, 3-2 Lone Star Conference)
Jamie Bonnarens 8-12 1-3 20, Lejha Smith 7-10 1-2 15, Ava Battese 4-15 1-1 11, Amaka Nwakamma 4-5 0-0 9, Parfitt Mcnair 3-3 0-0 6, Jazmine Luster 3-5 0-2 6, Andrea Martinez 1-6 0-3 2, Briana Underwood 0-1 1-2 1, Petra Sellin 0-2 0-0 0, Sydney Ellis 0-0 0-0 0, Brianna Turner 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 30-59 4-13 70.
UTPB (4-9, 2-3)
Kayla Bretherton 4-14 3-6 12, Jasmine Spriggins 4-7 0-0 11, Jackie Perez 2-5 4-4 9, Victoria Lopez 3-5 0-0 8, Khali Pippins-Tryon 2-11 0-1 4, Kristel Reid 2-5 0-0 4, Heather Crittenden 1-4 0-0 2, Sierra LaGrande 0-4 0-0 0, Alexandria Dockery 0-1 0-4 0, Chynna Rivera 0-1 0-0 0, Shania Thompson 0-0 0-0 0, Brittani McCoy 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 18-58 7-15 50.
Cameron…………….. 17.. 22 17 14 — 70
UTPB………………….. 10.. 14 11 15 — 50
3-Point goals — Cameron 4-13 (Jamie Bonnarens 3-5, Ava Battese 2-12, Amaka Nwakamma 1-1, Andrea Martinez 0-3, Petra Sellin 0-2, Briana Underwood 0-1), UTPB 7-18 (Jasmine Spriggins 3-3, Victoria Lopez 2-2, Kayla Bretherton 1-3, Jackie Perez 1-3, Sierra LaGrande 0-3, Khali Pippins-Tryon 0-2, Alexandria Dockery 0-1, Chynna Rivera 0-1). Total fouls — Cameron 19, UTPB 18. Fouled out — None. Technical fouls — None. Rebounds — Cameron 52 (Lejha Smith 11), UTPB 28 (Sierra LaGrande 6). Assists — Cameron 13 (Jamie Bonnarens 4), UTPB 10 (Kayla Bretherton 4).
