Box Score CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – In one of the most exciting games in the Royce Chadwick era, the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi women's basketball team outlasted Incarnate Word for a thrilling 57-56 victory in San Antonio on Wednesday night.
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The Islanders (6-13. 3-5) led by 15 points heading into the fourth quarter, before the Cardinals (5-13, 2-5) rolled off a nine-point run to level the scores with 3:02 remaining. Quincy Baker's jumper scored the last points in the run of play.
With both teams in the bonus, free throws generated the final five points in the final three minutes. After Aricka Adams, who led all scorers with 16, went to the line to tie the game at 56-56 with 1:10 remaining, Brittany Mbamalu threw her body on the floor to grab a loose ball and drawing a foul in the process.
The 63-percent free throw shooter went 1-of-2 from the line. UIW then flew down the court, as Adams attempted a 3-pointer. Yvonne Maosa, who matched Adams with 16 points, was fouled on the rebound and had an opportunity to give the hosts the lead with her two shots at the line with 3.3 seconds remaining.
Maosa missed both shots, but the fun was not over at that point, as the Islanders tipped the rebound out of bounds, giving the Cardinals one last opportunity with 1.8 on the clock. Baker caught the lobbed inbounds pass in the lane, but Jennifer Ramirez and Kre'Ana Henry, though they did not receive credit for a block, made it nearly impossible for the forward to get the ball to the basket.
POINTS FROM THE GAME
• A&M-Corpus Christi erased an early eight-point Cardinal lead in the first half with a 12-2 run, prompted by seven of Kassie Jones' 15 points.
• The Islanders matched their season high for points in a second quarter with 19 against the Cardinals.
• Following four minutes of scoreless basketball to open the third quarter, the Islanders went on a 22-6 run to take a 14-point lead into the final frame.
BREATH OF FRESH AIR
• Mykayla Flores and Uri Jolivette came off the bench against UIW to provide a spark for the offense and defense.
• Jolivette turned in a career-high performance in four categories with 10 points, three assists, one steal and 24 minutes played.
• Flores, while not matching her counterpart in career marks, essentially dominated the third quarter with intense defense that forced seven Cardinal turnovers. The San Antonio native chipped in all five of her points during that span.
JUNIOR CONNECTION
For the second consecutive game, Brittany Mbamalu paced the Islanders with 15 points. Kassie Jones joined Mbamalu in leading the Islanders with points. Camesha Davis grabbed seven rebounds, while Kre'Ana Henry snagged six boards and produced several key defensive stands.
The junior class, academically speaking, accounts for 54.8-percent (589-1084) of the Islanders' points this season. Davis leads the blue and green in rebounding with 6.5 boards per game and Mbamalu tops the charts with 11.2 points per game.
NOTABLE STATS
• Coming into the game, the Islanders were .627 from the charity stripe in the final five minutes of games this season and .619 in the final minute of regulation. After tonight, the Islanders improved to 40-of-63 and 12-of-23 in those respective categories.
• The Islanders committed their second lowest turnover total this season with 12.
• A&M-Corpus Christi held the advantage in bench scoring against the Cardinals with a 30-12 margin. It marks the 14th time this season that the blue and green subs outscored the opposing subs. The bench outscored the starting five for the 10th time this season on Wednesday.
WHAT'S NEXT
The Islanders return to the Coastal Bend for a three-game homestand, starting on Saturday with an 11:30 a.m. tip against Stephen F. Austin. The Islanders Digital Network will stream audio starting at 10:45 a.m., while the video stream will be provided by ESPN3.
