Watson leads Lady Buffs to first-round win - Lone Star Conference Skip To Main Content

Women's Basketball By Nick Eatman

Watson leads Lady Buffs to first-round win

West Texas A&M’s quest for a third straight LSC Championship title got off to a good start Wednesday night at the Allen Event Center.
 
      The No. 1 seeded Lady Buffs had no trouble getting past Midwestern State in the quarterfinal round, cruising to a 63-44 win in the quarterfinal round.
 
      After a day off, the Lady Buffs advance to Friday’s semifinal round to face the winner of Texas A&M-Commerce/Tarleton State, who square off Thursday evening.
 
      The season ends for the Mustangs with a 5-22 record.
 
      Sasha Watson, a first-team All-LSC pick and a member of the All-Defensive team, showed off her offensive skills, leading all scorers with 19 points. Michaela Neuhaus had 13 points while Zantaya Davis added 11 with five rebounds.
 
      After leading at halftime 30-20, the Lady Buffs had just a 12-point lead midway through the quarter when they got even hotter from the field, making five straight shots on five possessions, including six points from Watson. WTAMU increased its lead to 22 and never looked back.
 
      The Mustangs, who only led for 22 seconds when they grabbed a 2-0 lead, shot just 32.7 from the floor on 16 of 49 shooting. MSU made just one of 13 attempts from 3-point lead. While they didn’t have a scorer in double figures, the Mustangs were led by Whitney Taylor’s nine points, while Jacquar Westbrooks had eight points and five rebounds.
 
      After beating West Texas A&M on a last-second buzzer beater to claim the 2013 LSC Championship, MSU has now been ousted by the Lady Buffs in Allen the last three years.
 
      West Texas A&M knocked out MSU in the LSC Championship last season for its second straight title after cutting down the nets in 2014 after beating Tarleton State in the final.
 
      The Lady Buffs improve to 48-14 all-time in the LSC Championship with a league-best 13 championships.

 













West Texas A&M Press Conference: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BR-JMxxW-do

Midwestern State Press Conference: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cQSudWvkeI4
 
West Texas A&M Notes
  • The Lady Buffs are now 45-14 when facing Midwestern State and 3-2 on a neutral floor
  • This is the fifth straight win for WT over MSU
  • Wednesday’s meeting is a rematch of last year’s LSC Tournament Final with both meetings resulting in a West Texas A&M victory
  • West Texas A&M is 48-14 in the LSC’s postseason tournament and 9-2 in the Allen Event Center. 
  • Seventh straight LSC Tournament win for the Lady Buffs and fifth season in a row that they have reached the  semifinals
  • First Lone Star Conference Tournament win for Head Coach Kristen Mattio
  • Outscored MSU 34-20 in the paint
  • Sasha Watson’s 19 points was her second highest scoring effort for the season, and it was eighth time this season she led the team in scoring
  • The Lady Buffs shot 51.1% from the field which was their third best effort for the season
  • West Texas A&M made only one three-pointer which was a season low 
  • Senior Zantaya Davis tallied a block early in the game for her 38th of the season moving into 10th all-time by herself in blocks in a season (Teresa Tinner, 1987-88)
  • The six points WT allowed in the first quarter was the third-fewest in a quarter this season (UTPB with four and Midwestern State five)
  • The Lady Buffs have struggled in the third quarter as of late, but outscored MSU 22-14 in the third
  • WT held MSU to one triple made matching the season-low allowed (Texas Woman’s Jan. 9)
  • West Texas A&M moves within three points of tying MSU in the Highway 287 Challenge at 9.5 to 6.5
  • Watson tied her season-high with eight field goals made (Angelo State, 2/3) and now needs 13 assists to tie for 10th all-time in career assists and 26 assists for 10th all-time in a season
  • It was the 21st time WT has held the opposition under 40 percent shooting and the 12th time allowing under 50 points
 
Midwestern State Notes
 
  • Midwestern State falls to 17-48 against West Texas A&M and 1-3 versus the Lady Buffs in the LSC Tournament
  • This is the fourth consecutive season that the two teams meet and second straight LSC Quarterfinals matchup between the two.
  • Midwestern State concludes season 5-22.
  • Whitney Taylor led the team in scoring for the 10th time this season.
  • The Mustangs led for 22 seconds early on in the ballgame.
  • The Mustangs are now 11-6 in the LSC Tournament