NATCHITOCHES, La. – The Texas A&M-Corpus Christi women's basketball team was taken down in the finale of its three-game road trip on Saturday afternoon, falling victim to a tough second half and falling to Northwestern State by a final score of 65-49.
The Islanders (2-12, 1-6 SLC) got off to a nice start in their matchup against the Lady Demons (8-7, 5-2 SLC), going ahead by as many as six early on and taking a one-point lead into the break after a hard-fought opening 20 minutes. The next 20 did not go according to the same script, though, with the visitors getting outscored 41-24 between the third and fourth quarters to slowly fall out of striking distance.
The loss did not come without a standout performance for A&M-Corpus Christi, however, as senior
Samora Watson showed out with a game-high 22 points on 8-19 shooting from the field. Even with the momentum turning in the other direction, the Louisiana native did all she could to keep the team in the game in the second half during her return to her home state, pouring in 16 of its 24 points while getting to the line seven times and knocking down five of them. Beyond Watson, senior
K'Nari Holliday was the other Islander to reach double figures, reaching 10 while also tying for the team lead in rebounds with six.
Like much of their game on Thursday against East Texas A&M, the Islanders went back-and-forth with Northwestern State in the first quarter, playing to three ties and three lead changes over the early goings en route to a 15-10 Lady Demons lead. A&M-Corpus Christi leaned on Holliday to get the offense going at this time, with the forward scoring six points in total while converting on three shots in a four-possession span to help keep things close.
The second quarter was really where the Islanders got things going, relying on a stifling defense to wrestle control of the game away for the first time in the afternoon. During this period, they held the hosts to nine points in total, which came on a paltry 3-12 shooting from the field and 1-5 from downtown. This effort helped open things up on offense, most notably with a 9-0 run that brought them from down three to up six right before halftime. Senior
Chelsea Wooten started this off with five points of her own, converting on a two-point basket and then turning around and drilling a three pointer right after to put A&M-Corpus Christi in front. Watson followed this up with a drive to the paint for two, and after that, Holliday capped things off with a layup of her own to make it 23-17 in favor of the visitors. A few Lady Demon baskets near the end of the half would stem this tide, but it was still enough to send the team into the locker room with a one-point advantage.
Once the buzzer sounded in the third quarter, Northwestern State came out with a flurry, scoring 13 of the first 17 points to turn its deficit into an eight-point lead in just under six minutes of game action. After this continued to grow up to double digits, the Islanders did find a bit of a rhythm, getting back to within five on a Watson and-one near the end of the third and a steal and score by redshirt senior
Trinity Slocum to begin the fourth. Unfortunately for A&M-Corpus Christi, though, this ended up being their best shot at regaining their lead from earlier, as the Lady Demons would catch fire from the field in the form of seven makes in 11 tries, which all but put the game out of reach.
The Islanders will now return back to Corpus Christi looking to get back in the win column, starting a three-game homestand on Thursday with a matchup against McNeese at 7 p.m.
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