Islanders Tame Bulldogs In Season Opener

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas - Texas A&M-Corpus Christi appeared to be in midseason form during its opener this Friday, barreling past visiting Texas Lutheran by a score of 87-56. 

The night would start in recognition of redshirt-senior Brittany Mbamalu, who set the program record in the final contest of the previous season, with the 210th three-pointer of her career. The senior leader showed that she could still hit from beyond the arc in this year's opener, recording 21 points overall, and hitting five of 10 attempts from three-point land.

Despite their raucous victory, the Islanders showed some new-season-jitters in the opening two minutes of the game, missing their first five field goal attempts on the evening. The home team would bounce back quickly however, taking the visiting Bulldogs on a 15-3 run over the next three minutes for a 15-8 lead. Creating 11 Texas Lutheran turnovers in the first quarter alone, the Islanders bothered the Bulldog ballhandlers for the entirety of the contest, finishing with 14 steals and 29 turnovers created.

After holding TLU to just nine field goal attempts in the opening 10, the Islanders would take a 23-16 lead into the first break. Three new Corpus players scored the first points of their D-I careers during that first frame, as Lajaneira Robinson, K'Neisha Bush and Giana Wright each collected a bucket. 

The Islanders defense was near perfect in the second quarter, while holding their guests to just eight points. Corpus Christi scored 17 of the first 19 points in quarter number two, with Dalesia Booth pouring in a pair of buckets, to finish the half with 10 points and four steals. Coach Chadwick's side would sit firmly in control with a 45-24 lead heading into halftime, as the home squad went 18-43 (41.9%) the opening 20 minutes.

Brittany Mbamalu would start to take over in the second half, registering a trio of three-pointers and 13 points in the third quarter, along with another trey in the fourth. Kre'Ana Henry would score eight points in the second half to finish with 17 on the night, while teammate Tiara Matthews had a big second half in the paint, with six points, two steals and an offensive board during just nine minutes played.

The Islanders would outscore the Bulldogs 21-13 in the final stanza of the evening matchup, to open their year on an 87-56 victory. The Blue and Green's win marks the third time in the last five years they've opened on a winning note, and gives the side four straight wins inside of Dugan Wellness Center. The Islanders have outscored opponents by an average of 23.25 points over those DWC games, and have been victorious in six of their last seven matchups dating back to last season.

• Dalesia Booth's four steals is a personal career-high, as the Islanders scored 38 points off of turnovers on the night
• As a team Corpus Christi out-rebounded the Bulldogs 47-28, including a 27-14 margin in the opening half
• Henry held the game-high with seven boards on the night, while Mbamalu, Dae Dae Evans, and Uri Jolivette cleaned the glass six times each
• The Islanders 87 points were just one short of last year's season-high of 88, breaking the 80-point barrier for the ninth time in the past five years
• After leading her team with 139 assists last season, Emma Young tallied a game-high five helpers, on the way to scoring five points and collecting five boards

COMING UP NEXT
The Islanders get back to work the following day in a matchup against NAIA opponent McMurry. It will be the first time Corpus Christi has played the Abilene program, as they look for a perfect 2-0 record to start the season. Saturday's game, along with all Islanders' home games, can be followed on the Islander Digital Network powered by AEP Texas. 

STAY SOCIAL
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