The
Texas A&M-Corpus Christi women's basketball team beat
Rhode Island by a 75-67 score at the Georgia State
Invitational.
The
win marks the first back-to-back wins by the Islanders and brings
their season record to 4-7.
Rhode Island falls to 5-7 on the year.
Jade Davis
continued her hot streak, leading the team in scoring for the sixth
game in a row while scoring 15 points, one of four Islanders in
double digits. The team
overall shot 53.6% for the game.
"We shot the
ball well today." said Head
Coach Robert Robinson. "We
knocked down our open shots and out post players did well getting
position on the inside."
In the first
half, the Islanders jumped out to an early lead and never let up as
they never trailed throughout the game. Davis put TAMUCC ahead before the
clock ever started, as Rhode Island was assessed a technical foul
on the bench and Davis made 1-of-2 free throws to make it 1-0.
A Smith jumper
and a three-pointer by Shaye Montgomery quickly gave the Islanders
a 6-0 lead one minute into the game.
TAMUCC steadily
built their lead to as many as 13 points in the first half at
32-19. The Islanders ended
the first half just as strong, scoring the last four points on
LaToya Thomas and Adrienne Scott jumpers to take a 12 point lead
into the half at 36-24.
In the second
half, the Islanders held steady, never leading by less than six
points and stretching their advantage to as many as 18 at 64-46
with 5:24 left in the game.
The second half
is where Davis made her mark, scoring 10 of her 15 points. Montgomery added seven points
and pulled down five rebounds as well in the second half.
The Islanders
defense held Rams leading scorer Sierra Cooper to only six points
in the game, nearly cutting her 11.5 average in half. The Islander defense forced 19
turnovers while making nine steals.
"We did a good
job guarding Cooper today."
said Robinson. "We go into
the games looking to limit the other teams' top threat and we did
that well for a full 40 minutes out there today."
The win for the
Islanders gives them a 1-0 series advantage as this was the first
ever meeting between the two teams.
Davis led the
Islanders in scoring with 15 points. Montgomery scored 13, Scott scored 12
and Sarah Davidson added 10 points. Smith led the team with six rebounds
while Montgomery had five.
"I thought
Adrienne did a good job out there today." said Robinson. "She has been gaining confidence
the past few games and she did really well today in the post on
both the offense and defensive ends."
The Islanders
now take on tournament host Georgia State on Tuesday at 3 PM CST in
the championship game of the invitational.
"Georgia State
is fairly similar to Rhode Island in that they like to press and
get the ball inside to their post players." said Robinson. "This is a good chance for us to get a
win and to build momentum heading into Southland Conference
play."
Georgia State
advanced to the game by beating Mississippi Valley State by a 70-60
score in the opening game of the tournament. The Panthers are now 6-3 on the year
heading into the game against the Islanders.
