West Texas A&M post Abby Spurgin goes up for a shot against Lone Star Conference rival Texas A&M-Kingsville on Saturday afternoon at the First United Bank Center. [Jesse Rice/ For Press Pass Sports]
West Texas A&M protected its home court while earning a two-game sweep of Lone Star Conference rival Texas A&M-Kingsville with back-to-back wins Friday and Saturday at the First United Bank Center.
The No. 15-ranked Lady Buffs downed the Javelinas in the first meeting Friday, 74-65, followed by a dominating 71-50 victory Saturday.
WT stays red hot winning six straight games improving to 8-1 overall and 7-1 in the LSC. TAMK falls to 4-6, 4-6.
WT opened Saturday’s game on a 15-0 run to open a 17-2 first quarter lead, and were able to keep the Javelinas at a distance the rest of the way. The Lady Buffs used a strong defensive performance forcing 24 turnovers, turning those mistakes into 21 points. Seniors Abby Spurgin and Lexy Hightower each scored a team-high 15 points in the win. Hightower added five assists, while Spurgin pulled down four rebounds. Teammate Jillian Sowell added nine points all coming in the first half.
Coach’s quote
“I thought we were slow on Friday,” WT head coach Kristen Mattio said. “We wanted a faster start which we did. But a big turnaround was our defense. We contested shots and made it tough for them to score on us. That allowed us to set the tone for the game.”
Stats of the game
The Lady Buffs shot 50 percent (26-of-52) from the field.
WT never trailed in the contest, leading for 39:31 minutes.
WT forced 24 turnovers turning those miscues into 21 points.
The Lady Buffs outscored TAMK 44-12 in the paint.
Player of the game
It was a very successful weekend for post Abby Spurgin. The senior is finding her groove and it showed against the Javelinas by scoring a combined 41 points in two wins. Spurgin scored a season-high 26 points with eight rebounds in Friday’s 74-65 victory, then followed that effort with 15 points Saturday going 7-of-10 from the field.
West Texas A&M guard Lexy Hightower drives through the Texas A&M-Kingsville defense on Saturday afternoon. [Jesse Rice/ For Press Pass Sports]
Hightower climbs record books
Senior sharp shooter Lexy Hightower continues to climb the WT school record books. With a combined 37 points in the two wins against TAMK, Hightower now has 1,456 points for her stellar career. That moves the Amarillo High graduate to eighth all-time surpassing Devin Griffin (2011-2014) and Von Tucker (1984-1988). Hightower also made her 214th career 3-pointer tying her for second all-time with Carlee Massie (2000-2004).
Up next
West Texas A&M continues its home schedule with LSC games against St. Edwards on Monday and Tuesday.