The UTPB women’s basketball team took another step in the right direction by extending its current winning streak to two games Thursday.
Showing consistent speed on both ends of the court, the Falcons came away with a 70-64 win over Texas A&M International in Lone Star Conference play at the Falcon Dome.
It was the first home victory for UTPB since Dec. 15, 2021.
“I think that’s one thing that this team needs, is confidence,” UTPB coach Rae Boothe said. “We really tried to work on that last week and it paid off for St. Mary’s.
“I just really wanted to make sure our actions were representing who we wanted to be in terms of our work ethic, preparation and belief in each other.”
UTPB started the game sharp on defense, forcing five early turnovers from the Dustdevils to set a tone.
The only thing that was off for the Falcons in the opening minutes was their finishing, as they couldn’t add on to a layup from Morgan Helgesen.
A 3-pointer from Texas A&M International’s Eva Langton was the spark the Falcons needed to finish their scoring opportunities, seeing them go on a 7-0 scoring run to take a six-point lead with four minutes left in the first quarter.
The Falcons managed to find their most efficient looks from inside the paint, where Ogechi Nwodo made the biggest impact by scoring four points in the first period.
“This is a product of [Nwodo’s] process,” Boothe said. “She believes she’s going to get out what she puts in, and she puts in a lot.”
A slowdown from UTPB’s offense helped the Dustdevils begin to catch up on the scoreboard to start the second period.
Two 3-pointers from Emily Swiercz highlighted a stretch where the visiting team outscored the Falcons 8-4 to tie the game up at 19-19 with less than six minutes left in the first half.
Although UTPB’s most consistent looks were created near the basket, Holly Hemmeline showed that she can connect from beyond the arc to give her team some breathing room.
Hemmeline hit two 3-pointers, accompanied by quick layups from Helgesen and Nwodo take an 11-point advantage into the break.
The Falcons outscored the Dustdevils 12-1 to close out the second period.
Nwodo, Hemmeline and Helgesen finished with 15, 14 and 13 points, respectively, to lead UTPB.
Texas A&M International made it closer by finding its touch from 3-point range in the third quarter.
UTPB didn’t lose the lead in the period, but saw things get tighter when the Dustdevils went 4-for-7 from long distance.
The Falcons needed to turn up the physicality late in the game with the Dustdevils aggressively seeking to create turnovers.
Texas A&M International couldn’t complete the rally, as UTPB closed out the game outscoring its opponent 25-24 in the final period.
It was UTPB’s second consecutive victory after defeating St. Mary’s 68-43 Monday on the road.
The Falcons (6-17 overall, 2-9 conference) host Texas A&M-Kingsville at 2 p.m. Saturday at the Falcon Dome.
“With two and a half weeks left, we’re excited to finish strong,” Boothe said. “We don’t know if we’ll have a chance at postseason, but right now we just want to finish every day like it’s our last day.”
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UTPB 70, Texas A&M International 64
TEXAS A&M INTERNATIONAL (15-7, 5-5 Lone Star Conference)
Silvia Blanco 1-3 0-0 2, Eva Langton 3-5 0-0 9, Clara Fernandez 4-6 0-2 11, Raiana Brown 2-4 1-2 5, Evelyn Quiroz 2-9 0-0 5, Emily Swiercz 9-15 3-4 28, Sophia Haberer 1-1 2-3 4, Audry Hornanday 0-0 0-0 0, Vanessa Herrera 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 22-43 6-11 64.
UTPB (6-17, 2-9)
Morgan Helgesen 5-9 1-2 13, Ogechi Nwodo 7-13 1-3 15, Kamari Portalis 1-6 2-4 4, Avalon Munoz 2-5 1-2 7, Holly Hemmeline 5-11 0-0 14, Diavian Spencer 1-2 0-0 2, Ally Haman 0-1 0-0 0, Alexis Popham 1-2 0-0 2, Rory Carter 2-2 4-4 8, Kim Best 2-3 1-2 5. Totals 26-54 10-17 70.
A&M International… 11…. 9 20 24 — 64
UTPB………………….. 15.. 16 14 25 — 70
3-Point goals — Texas A&M International 14-29 (Blanco 0-2, Langton 3-5, Fernandez 3-4, Quiroz 1-6, Swiercz 7-12), UTPB 8-22 (Helgesen 2-4, Portalis 0-2, Munoz 2-4, Hemmeline 4-10, Spencer 0-1, Popham 0-1). Total fouls — Texas A&M International 13, UTPB 12. Fouled out — None. Technical fouls — None. Rebounds — Texas A&M International 23 (Langton 7), UTPB 30 (Nwodo 9). Assists — Texas A&M International 17 (Quiroz 9), UTPB 17 (Munoz 6).
