CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – The Texas A&M-Corpus Christi women's basketball team could not complete a comeback effort in its game against Texas State on Thursday morning, roaring back after a slow start but ultimately falling by a final score of 53-43.
The Islanders (1-3) found themselves trailing early on in the contest in large part due to a cold opening half offensively, totaling 15 points through the first two quarters while shooting 26.3 percent from the field. The scoring during this time came largely from senior
K'Nari Holliday, who put in seven of those points while making both of her shots from the field and three of her four attempts from the line. These struggles were offset in the first quarter on the other side, with the team holding the Bobcats to just 4-11 shooting in the opening 10 minutes, but the visitors managed to find a rhythm right before halftime, putting together a 22-point second quarter to send the hosts into the break down by 21.
Once the second half got underway, A&M-Corpus Christi flipped the script completely, coming out and starting the half with a triple from junior
Asha Walker and two from graduate
Chelsea Wooten to force Texas State to call a timeout after just a minute and a half. The Islanders kept the pressure on after this as well, eventually cutting the deficit in half right before the end of the third quarter. A bucket by the Bobcats with 21 seconds left in the frame made it a 10-point game, but on the other end, senior
Samora Watson grabbed an offensive rebound and buried a midrange jumper as the clock expired to put the cherry on top of a 24-point outburst and bring the team to within eight heading into the final 10 minutes.
From here, things slowed down immensely, with both squads ramping up the defensive intensity in an effort to walk away with the win. Neither team managed to get any points on the board until Watson made her way to the line and converted on both shots at the 6:36 mark to bring the Islanders to within six, and the first made field goal did not come until Texas State put in a layup with just three minutes left to go. Holliday got these points back on the other end on the next possession, but this would be the last time A&M-Corpus Christi would find its way onto the scoreboard, as the team was unable to recapture the groove from the third quarter down the home stretch and ended up taking home the tough defeat as a result.
The biggest turning point in the game ended up being in transition, as the Islanders were outscored 11-0 in fast break points and allowed Texas State to score 28 points off of turnovers while putting in just nine of their own on the other end. This ended up negating some of the other major advantages that A&M-Corpus Christi held, including winning the rebounding battle 33-27 and knocking down two more threes than its Sun Belt Conference opponent.
The leading scorer for the Islanders ended up being Holliday, who finished with a season-high 14 points on 4-6 shooting from the field and 6-8 from the free throw line. Wooten and Watson both followed close behind with nine points apiece, and sophomore
Rayna Williams paced the team in rebounds with six.
The Islanders will now embark on their longest road trip of the season, playing five straight games away from Corpus Christi before finally returning on December 29. The first two stops will come next week, with the team first taking on No. 18 Oklahoma State on Monday before then heading to Tulsa for a matchup with Oral Roberts on Wednesday.
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