Box Score CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – Camesha Davis notched her third straight double-double on Wednesday night, as the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi women's basketball team topped Panhandle State 66-40 in the Dugan Wellness Center.
The Islanders (3-2) struggled to separate themselves from the Aggies (1-4) in the first half, but a lockdown defensive effort in the final 20 minutes, holding Panhandle State to 18.5-percent shooting, guided the Blue and Green to victory.
"We've been off for a week, so we were concerned about that first quarter," head coach
Royce Chadwick said. "We hit a couple of shots and then we went cold from the field. It took us a while to get back into the rhythm."
A&M-Corpus Christi held its visitors to 18 points in the final two quarters, while forcing seven turnovers.
"In the second half, our defensive intensity picked up. We cut down their lanes to the basket, which hurt us during the first half. We struggled being aggressive getting to the basket. We settled for shots 12 to 15 feet away from the basket."
Much of the success for the Blue and Green came from protecting the ball, limiting the miscues to a season low of 15 turnovers on the night.
In addition to Davis' 11 points,
Brianna Jackson set a career high with 13 points and
Dalesia Booth chipped in 10, as the Islanders had at least three players in double figures for the second straight game.
DAVIS DAILY DOUBLE-DOUBLE
Camesha Davis scored all of her 11 points in the second half, after grabbing seven of her 10 rebounds in the opening 20 minutes. The senior became just the seventh player in program history to reach 10 double-doubles in a career.
"It has just been natural for me," Davis said. "My focus was to get on the boards early. We needed to control the glass, so I wanted to help out my team. Whenever a shot goes up, I try to make sure that my girl will not get the rebound. I try to be aggressive and that puts me in spots to pull down a rebound and help my team out. "
Davis also notched six offensive rebounds, which moved her into eighth all time with 209 boards of the offensive end. This season, the DeSoto native has made it a focus to give the Blue and Green second chance opportunities, as 18 of her 44 rebounds on the year are offensive.
Even with her offensive and rebounding exploits on the night, Chadwick was impressed by Davis' defensive efforts, becoming just the fifth player in program history to record 80 blocks with her pair on Wednesday.
"I think her energy made a difference in the second half," Chadwick added. "She was aggressive after loose balls. She got a steal on a play that she just made herself. We need her to turn it on and leave it on, and she's done that for us over the last few games."
SECOND HALF SURGE
A&M-Corpus Christi opened the game with the first four points, but then found a lid on the basket, going 1-for-9 until
Brittany Mbamalu connected on a 3-pointer with 49 seconds to play in the first quarter.
Leading by just eight at the halftime break, Chadwick called on his team to be more aggressive on the defensive end and attack the basket.
"I thought our defensive intensity was much better in the second half," he continued. "We came out and did a better job of containing drivers and communicating. In the first half, we were lethargic on the defensive end. Second half, they listened to our adjustments and converted on the opportunities that they gave us."
The Islanders responded in the final 20 minutes by nearly setting the school record for shooting percentage in a half, missing it but just one percent. Along with 11 points from Davis, Jackson added seven points on a perfect 3-of-3 shooting.
On the defensive end, the third quarter set the tone for the remainder of the game, as the Blue and Green held the Aggies to just six points, the second lowest total in program history.
DOMINATING THE GLASS
The Islanders pulled down 41 rebounds on the night, finishing plus-11 on the evening. The mark set the overall rebound margin in the 2016-17 season to plus-27.
A&M-Corpus Christi has not posted a plus-27 rebound advantage in the opening five games of a season since 2009-10, when it held a plus-34 margin over opponents.
LONG-RANGE MBAMBER
>> Redshirt-junior
Brittany Mbamalu made her long-awaited debut for the 2016-17 season.
>> The Houston native sunk a pair of 3-pointers in her opening game of the year, which moved her career tally to 157.
>> With Mbamalu in the rotation on Wednesday, the Islanders matched their season high of five makes from downtown.
>> Freshman
Rayanna Carter picked up her first career points on a long-range effort in the fourth quarter.
SIX O'CLOCK SHOWDOWN
The win sends the Blue and Green into Saturday's South Texas Showdown, presented by NavyArmy Community Credit Union, against UT-Rio Grande Valley. The 6 p.m. tip at the Dugan will have t-shirts for the first 200 fans through the gates.
Including the time that UTRGV competed as UT-Pan American, the Islanders hold a 21-9 record over their rivals, including a current three-game winning streak and an 11-4 mark in the Coastal Bend.
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- Go Islanders -
