A Showdown Classic

EDINBURG, Texas – If the inaugural women's basketball game in the South Texas Showdown, presented by NavyArmy Community Credit Union, set the standard of a knock-down, drag-out type of contest that is to be expected in this rivalry, Tuesday night's matchup between the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi women's basketball team and UT-Rio Grande Valley at UTRGV Fieldhouse surpassed that mark.
 
The Islanders (4-7) battled back from an eight-point deficit in the third to take the lead on an 11-3 run, but the Vaqueros (8-6) fired back with a 16-5 run of their own to open the fourth, as the Blue and Green fell 55-46 in its final non-conference contest of the year.
 
"I thought we competed tonight," head coach Royce Chadwick said. "We won all the hustle plays and outrebounded them all night. We pounded them on the boards, but we turned it over way too many times (26). In crunch time, they changed some things up on us, and our young players weren't able to react to them very well."
 
Neither side was able to gain a foothold in the opening 10 minutes with just 15 combined points. The shooting struggles continued for both ball clubs through the second quarter, as both teams shot under 25-percent from the field.
 
Trailing by eight coming out of halftime, the Islanders took control of the game. Camesha Davis scored nine of the first 11 points out of the break, as a part of her monster 16-point, 14-rebound performance.
 
UTRGV managed to withstand the Islanders onslaught and opened the fourth quarter by scoring the next 13 points to grow its lead to 12. A&M-Corpus Christi attempted to mount a comeback with a 5-0 run late in the fourth, led by baskets from Kassie Jones and Dae Dae Evans, but the deficit was too much overcome.
 
In a reversal of Monday's contest, the Islanders thoroughly dominated the glass with a 53-30 advantage, tying their season high. Emma Young matched her career-high with seven to help Davis. Despite a season-high 19 offensive rebounds, the Blue and Green tallied just eight second-chance points.
 
Rookies Up to Scratch
Five freshmen and two junior-transfers enter conference season with 11 games of Division I experience. Chadwick and the Islanders have utilized the non-conference slate to bring them up to speed and prepare them for Southland play.
 
>> Dalesia Booth dropped 21 points against Montana Tech on Nov. 23, which was the most for a rookie since Brittany Mbamalu did it in 2013-14.
>> In the Islanders' 11 non-conference games, a rookie led the Blue and Green in scoring five times, in assists on 10 occasions and in blocks twice.
>> Offensively, the rookies have been responsible for 21.9 points per game.
 
"I think our younger players have developed at a rate beyond their years," Chadwick continued. "They only lack experience at this point, and once we get them some more experience, they're going to be really good."
 
DAVIS GETS HER DOUBLE
Senior Camesha Davis tallied her fifth double-double of the season with 16 points and 14 rebounds. She is now tied for fourth with Olivia Fouty in career double-doubles with 12.
 
For her efforts, Davis was named to the Battle on the Border All-Tournament team.
 
"I thought Camesha played hard for us tonight," Chadwick added. "She was very aggressive on the glass. Even though she turned it over too many times, she was our defensive stopper on the night. She definitely deserved to be on the all-tournament team."
 
ON TO SOUTHLAND
The Islanders will have a little more than a week off before they open Southland Conference action on Dec. 31 at New Orleans. The Blue and Green will play four games in the first week of the New Year with three on the road.

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