Lady Buffs Outlast TexAnns In LSC Final, 76-67 - Lone Star Conference Skip To Main Content
Patrick Green

Women's Basketball By Nick Eatman

Lady Buffs Outlast TexAnns In LSC Final, 76-67

One team prevented West Texas A&M from a perfect regular-season conference record. But the Lady Buffs found a way to avenge their lone Lone Star Conference loss to Tarleton State by getting the last laugh Saturday in the LSC Championship.

In a back-and-forth game that saw 24 ties or lead changes, West Texas used a 15-4 run in the final minutes for a 76-67 win at the Allen Event Center, giving the Lady Buffs their first LSC Championship crown since 2010 and their 12th overall.

Devin Griffin rebounded from a below-average semifinal game to lead the Lady Buffs with 21 points and 10 rebounds. Casey Land added another 20-point game, while Chontiquah White added 14 points and seven rebounds before fouling out. Raven Gerald added 10 and three assists.

Thanks to her 32-point effort on Friday, White was named the tournament’s MVP, while Land and Griffin joined her on the all-tournament team. Tarleton’s Brianna Bledsoe and Midwestern State’s Andrea Carter also made the squad.

Notably absent from the all-tournament team was Tarleton State standout Kiara Wright, the LSC’s Offensive and Defensive Player of the Year. While Wright did score 14 points and have 10 rebounds, she played most of the game in foul trouble and netted just 22 minutes.

Ikpeaku Iwobi came off the bench to provide a spark for the TexAnns, scoring 10 and adding six rebounds in just 15 minutes.

West Texas A&M improved to 27-2 overall and should remain the No. 1 seed in the South Central Regional, meaning next week’s tournament will likely be in Canyon.

Tarleton State falls to 21-8 but will certainly have a spot in next week’s regional.

In the first half, the TexAnns fell down 22-8 but managed to get it close despite Wright and Shanae Lowrance being in foul trouble. Megan O’Dell hit three 3-pointers and Raven McGrath also drilled a couple of shots beyond the arc.

West Texas A&M led 32-31 at the half but neither team held a lead larger than four points until the 1:35 mark of the game when Land’s layup gave the Lady Buffs a five-point edge. Free throws down the stretch built the lead out to nine at the final buzzer.

The Lady Buffs made just 3 of 15 shots from 3-point land, their lowest percentage of the season. But a 43-32 rebounding edge made up the difference.


2014 LSC Women’s Basketball Championship All-Tournament Team
Andrea Carter, Midwestern State
Brianna Bledsoe, Tarleton State
Casey Land, West Texas A&M
Devin Griffin, West Texas A&M
Chontiquah White, West Texas A&M (MVP)

West Texas A&M Notes
  • WT’s 18th finals berth and 26th LSC Tournament showing overall are both the most in league history.
  • Land, Griffin, Gerald, Logan and White have started every game this season with the exception of Senior Day.
  • This is WT’s league leading 12th Lone Star Conference Tournament Championship.
  • Casey Land is the third player this season for the Lady Buffs to eclipse 1,000 career points.
  • Devin Griffin recorded her team-leading sixth double-double of the season and 18th of her career tonight with a game-high 21 points. Casey Land recorded her first double-double of the season.
  • After trailing 5-4 to open the contest, the Lady Buffs went on an 18-3 run over the next 6:45, sparked by Casey Land and Raven Gerald triples. WT’s defense held the TexAnns without a field goal for over five minutes in that stretch in five attempts.
  • The Lady Buffs outrebounded TSU in the first half 23-13 and 43-32 for the game.
  • WT’s largest lead of the game was 14 at the 10:53 mark of the first frame.
  • By the seven minute mark of the second half, the Lady Buffs forced three of TSU’s five starters into foul trouble with four each.
  • WT closed the game on a 15-4 run.
  • The Lady Buffs shot only 20% from beyond the arc, their lowest in a game all season.
  • 21st game this season in which Chontiquah White has scored in double figures.
  • White fouled out with 3:29 left in the game.
Tarleton State Notes
  • Tarleton falls to 1-1 in LSC Championship Games and 0-2 when playing West Texas A&M in the tournament.
  • Over the final four minutes, Tarleton was 2-6 from the field; 0-3 from the 3-point line and 1-6 from the free throw line.
  • In the history of seniors Brianna Bledsoe, Kiara Wright and Shanae Lowrance, Tarleton is 7-3 in LSC Tournament games over the last four years – and 5-1 in games that Lowrance is in the starting lineup at the tournament.
  • Kiara Wright recorded her 58th career double-double and 21st this season. She now has 45 over the last two seasons