Six Lone Star Conference women’s basketball teams went undefeated last week. Midwestern State, St. Edward’s, St. Mary’s, No. 5 Texas A&M-Commerce, No. 25 West Texas A&M and Western New Mexico all picked up a pair of conference victories. Eastern New Mexico and WT both picked up wins over previously unbeaten Lubbock Christian leaving A&M-C as the only undefeated conference team remaining at 17-0 overall.
LSC women’s basketball teams are 155-129 overall this season and 20-11 against Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference teams, the other league in the NCAA South Central Region.
LSC schedule and results available here:
https://lonestarconference.org/calendar.aspx?path=wbball&
LSC BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP
The LSC Men’s and Women’s Basketball Championship is set for March 3-5-6-7-8, 2020 with the opening round on campus (March 3), and the final eight teams at Comerica Center in Frisco, Texas on Thursday-Sunday, March 5-8. The top 12 men’s and women’s teams will qualify with seeding based on the conference standings (22 games). The divisional champions will automatically qualify and be seeded using the conference standings.
PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
OFFENSIVE
Elizabeth Cathcart, Midwestern State, SR, Marketing, F, Spring Branch, Texas, Smithson Valley HS
Cathcart scored a career-high 23 points, including 13 points in the second half to lift Midwestern State to a come-from-behind win over Cameron on January 15. The senior shot 9-of-15 from the floor. On Saturday, Cathcart scored 18 points, grabbed eight rebounds, and recorded three blocks as the Mustangs swept the Red River Rivalry from Cameron. Cathcart's block of Maighan Hedge's game-tying three-point attempt with four seconds remaining secured the win for MSU Texas. For the week, Cathcart averaged 20.5 points per game and 6.5 rebounds per game. She also added five assists, three blocks and two steals.
DEFENSIVE
Tiana Parker, West Texas A&M, SR, Human Resources Management, C, Chehalis, Wash., William F. West HS
Parker was dominant in the paint this past week as No. 25 WT took over sole possession of first place in the division standings with victories over Angelo State and No. 2 Lubbock Christian to run their home record to 9-0 at the First United Bank Center. Parker went 7-of-20 from the floor including 5-of-6 from the charity stripe to go along with 13 total rebounds (four offensive, nine defensive), four assists, two steals and an incredible 13 blocks to hold opponents to a shooting percentage of 30.8% and just 57.0 points per game. The Chehalis, Wash. product scored six points to go along with eight rebounds and six blocks on Thursday night against ASU followed by 13 points, five rebounds and seven more blocks on Saturday afternoon against the No. 2 Lady Chaps as the Lady Buffs moved to 16-3 overall and 9-1 in LSC action.
WEEKLY AWARDS
Offensive
N-11 Mackenzie Hailey, Tarleton
N-18 Maddi Chitsey, Lubbock Christian
N-25 Ashton Duncan, Lubbock Christian
D-2 Mackenzie Hailey, Tarleton (2)
D-9 De’Anira Moore, Angelo State
D-16 Deijah Blanks, St. Edward’s
D-23 Nicole Heyn, Texas A&M International
J-7 Mar'Shalia Lollie, UAFS
J-13 Maighan Hedge, Cameron
J-20 Elizabeth Cathcart, Midwestern State
Defensive
N-11 Maddison Glass, Texas A&M-Commerce
N-18 Juliana Robertson, Lubbock Christian
N-25 Alexis Bryant, Texas A&M-Commerce
D-2 Juliana Louis, Texas A&M-Commerce
D-9 Sawyer Lloyd, Angelo State
D-16 Sammie Dufek, St. Edward’s
D-23 Chania Wright, Texas A&M-Commerce
J-7 Alexis Bryant, Texas A&M-Commerce (2)
J-13 Allie Schulte, Lubbock Christian
J-20 Tiana Parker, West Texas A&M
SELECTED NOTABLE PERFORMANCES
Zamorye Cox, Eastern New Mexico, scored a career-high 29 points in an upset win over No. 2 Lubbock Christian. Cox hit the game-winning shot with eight seconds remaining in overtime in the 69-68 victory over the Lady Chaps. The Portales, N.M. native ranks second in the LSC with 2.8 steals per game, ranks fourth in the LSC with 4.2 assists per game and ranks 13th in the LSC with 12.2 points per game.
Maighan Hedge, Cameron, followed up a week where she averaged 24.5 points with even better numbers in the Aggies two games against Midwestern State. The sophomore guard opened the week with a 28-point outing in Wichita Falls, where she was 8-14 from the floor and a perfect 11-11 from the charity stripe. She answered that performance by scoring a career-best 32 points against the Mustangs at home. After starting the contest with just two points in the first half, Hedge exploded for 30 points in the final 20 minutes including 19 in the third quarter alone. Hedge now leads the LSC with 20.3 points per game, and has scored 109 points in CU's last four outings.
Catara Samuel, Angelo State, showed her defensive capabilities against both WT and ENMU over the weekend. Samuel shot 42 percent from the field, 57 percent from the three-point line, and 57 percent from the free throw line. Samuels quick thinking, speed, and aggressive man to man defense was able to limit the Buffs in their scoring capabilities in their win against ASU, and was also able to keep ENMU from scoring for most of the four quarters. Samuel recorded 13 total rebounds, three on offense and 10 on defense, as well as one steal and seven assists.
Alivia Lewis, Eastern New Mexico, posted back-to-back double-doubles last week and leads the conference with six on the year. The junior recorded a 16 point and 18 rebound performance in an OT win over previously unbeaten Lubbock Christian Recorded LSC-high sixth double-double on the season with 12 points and ten rebounds against UT Permian Basin. She also picked up a season-high five blocks against UTPB. Ranks second in the single-game program record book with 18 rebound performance against LCU.
Kendall Blackburn, Oklahoma Christian, made the most of her first two collegiate starts as OC split a pair of games on the road. In a 68-53 win at UT Tyler, she had an impressive stat-stuffing performance, leading her team with 15 points, eight rebounds, six blocked shots, six steals and three assists, posting career highs in the middle three categories. Her six blocks were the most in game by an OC player in 12 seasons. She had another double-figure scoring game with 11 points and added two more blocks in a 91-64 loss at No. 4-ranked Texas A&M-Commerce. She fueled a second-half rally that cut a 29-point deficit to 12 points early in the fourth quarter.
Ma'K'la Woods, Texas Woman’s, Woods was a force on the glass for the week grabbing eight rebounds in each of the Pioneer’s two games. She also averaged 12.5 points per game on 64.7 percent shooting. Her interior defensive presence kept opponents to 41.2 percent shooting from the floor; forcing OT vs UT Permian Basin and eventually winning the game.
Karley Miller, Cameron, had a strong defensive effort in the Aggies two games against rival Midwestern State last week. In game one of the series, the Oklahoma City native recorded eight points and seven rebounds in just 15 minutes of action. Miller stepped up in the second game of the week, nearly recording her first double-double with nine points and 12 rebounds. She also added two blocks and two steals in front of the CU faithful and helped hold MSU to under 35 percent shooting in the game. For the two-game span, Miller averaged 8.5 points, 9.5 rebounds (15 of her 19 boards came on the defensive end), 1.5 steals and 1.0 block while shooting an efficient 5-9 from three-point range.
Jessica Barbosa, St. Mary's, recorded the first double-double of her career on Thursday against Texas A&M International with 11 points and 14 rebounds and she followed it up with nine more boards in the comeback win over Texas A&M Kingsville with four coming in the critical overtime period to secure the fifth-straight win for the Rattlers. In the last three games, Barbosa has brought down 44 rebounds, more than she had in the first nine games combined. For the week, Barbosa averaged 11.5 rebounds, 1.0 blocks, 1.0 assists and 5.5 points per game. She shot 50 percent from the field (5-10) and had no turnovers in 54 minutes.
Sammie Dufek, St. Edward’s, was a huge reason the Hilltoppers were so successful, holding opponents to just 53.5 points per game this week on 36.1 percent shooting from the floor. She was the leading rebounder for SEU averaging 7.5 per game and posted five blocks to move into fifth all-time in career blocks.
Lucy Benson, Tarleton, tallied seven steals to help lead Tarleton to a 1-1 weekend. On Thursday, the junior tallied four points and two steals in the win over UTPB. Benson helped hold UTPB to 33.3 percent shooting in the win. On Saturday, Benson tallied five points, three rebounds, and a season-high five steals in the loss to Western New Mexico. Benson helped forced 29 Mustang turnovers in the match-up.
Agang Tac, Texas A&M-Commerce, was a human flyswatter last week, turning aside seven shots in the No. 6 Lions' pair of home wins. Against UAFS, Tac had five blocked shots, helping the Lion defense set a program record with 10 blocks in a single game. Tac also had a steal and 10 rebounds in the game to help lift the Lions to the win. Tac had two more blocked shots and five rebounds in the team's win against Oklahoma Christian. Tac was also instrumental in the Lions' full-court pressure, altering passes with her length as she defended from end line to end line. She helped the Lions to a +31.5 scoring differential, a +13.0 rebounding margin and a +9.5 turnover margin over the week.
De'Anira Moore, Angelo State, scored 36 points for the Belles against the WT and ENMU this weekend, shooting 36 percent from the field and 90 percent from the free throw line. Moore is averaging 18 points a game, eight rebounds a game, and is shooting an average of 50 percent from the field and 75 percent from the free throw line. Moore registered 21 total rebounds, getting 15 rebounds against the Greyhounds, which is a career high for Moore. Moore also registered six blocks and two steals.
Brielle Woods, Texas Woman’s, led the Pioneers to an OT win vs UT Permian Basin with an impressive stat line from the point guard position. She recorded 22 points, four rebounds, four assists and 3 steals. On the afternoon she shot 55.6 percent from behind the arc which allowed TWU to force OT after trailing the majority of the game.
Bella Hughes, St. Mary’s, in a comeback win over Texas A&M Kingsville, Hughes recorded a career-high 23 points and six rebounds. She was 11-for-14 at the free throw line, tying for the 10th most makes and 9th most attempts at the charity stripe in St. Mary's history. With 1.5 seconds left in regulation, Hughes was fouled on a three-point attempt and made all three attempts to tie the game and force overtime. She also scored four of the team's seven points in the OT period to secure the win. For the week, Hughes averaged 15.5 points, 3.5 rebounds, 1.0 blocks and 1.0 steals per game. She was also 12-for-16 from the free throw line (75 percent).
Delaney Nix, West Texas A&M, led the No. 25 Lady Buffs to a pair of Lone Star Conference divisional home wins this past weekend over Angelo State and No. 2 Lubbock Christian to take over sole possession of first place in the division. The Tahlequah, Oklahoma product went 10-of-21 from the floor and 10-of-19 from behind the arc to average 15.0 points per contest to go along with nine rebounds (one offensive, eight defensive) and two assists in the pair of wins. Nix averaged 31.0 minutes per contest while holding a pair of high-powered offenses to 30.8% from the floor and an average of 57.0 points per game. Nix was unstoppable on Thursday night against the rival Belles as the sophomore went 7-of-11 from behind the arc to tie a career-high with 21 points while also connecting on the fourth most three-pointers in a single game in program history.
Anastacia Mickens, Texas A&M-Kingsville, provided the consistent look for the Javelinas against St Edward's and St Mary's last week as she surpassed three double-digit point mark in both games. She posted 14 points and 8 rebounds in the loss to the Hilltoppers, both team highs, and followed up with 15 points and 7 rebounds in the overtime loss to the Rattlers. On the year, she is averaging 7.6 points and 6.8 rebounds for the Javelinas while starting every game.
Paulina Rodriguez, Western New Mexico, helped the Mustangs notch key conference wins over the weekend, averaging 14.0 points as they finished the weekend 2-0 on the road. The Chihuahua, Mexico native went 5-for-7 (71.4 percent) beyond the arc, scoring 15 points against Texas Woman's. Rodriguez followed up that performance scoring 13 against Tarleton, to go along with nine rebounds, two assists, one block and three steals. Her efforts secured a 52-48 win over the Texans, the first ever for the Mustangs since joining the LSC.
Maddison Glass, Texas A&M-Commerce, was a threat not only with her scoring, but also her passing as the Lion senior had averaged 12.5 points and 5.0 assists last week. She used her ability to get into the paint to her advantage, getting to the foul line 13 times, and capitalizing on all 13 of her shots. She also got her teammates involved, helping lead the team to easy offense with her passing prowess. Against UAFS, she had 15 points and four assists, before adding 10 points and six assists in the team's win over Oklahoma Christian.
Mackenzie Hailey, Tarleton, led TSU to a 1-1 week after averaging 12 points and eight rebounds through the weekend. On Thursday, Hailey came close to posting the second triple-double in school history as Tarleton women's basketball topped UT Permian Basin, 58-51, to run its winning streak to a season-high six games in Wisdom Gym. Hailey recorded 13 points, 10 rebounds, and a career-high seven assists in the victory. The senior also recorded three steals and two blocks in the win. Despite Saturday's loss to Western New Mexico, Hailey led the Texans with 11 points, extending her double-digit scoring streak to 29 straight games and 98 for her career. With the steals, Hailey moved into Kiara fifth-most steals in program history - and most ever by a post player - in program history (222).