Women's Basketball 2/17/2013 2:10:00 AM

Dustdevils Score Huge Win Over St. Edward's

Box Score AUSTIN (February 16) – The TAMIU women’s basketball team moved one step closer to qualifying for their first Heartland Conference Tournament since the 2008-09 season, taking down St. Edward’s University 65-51 Saturday afternoon in Austin.

Samantha Chacon scored 14 of her game-high 20 points in the first half, while Tina Dang led TAMIU in the second scoring all 17 of her points in the final 20 minutes. TAMIU shot 45.5 percent from the field and 40.7 percent from beyond the arc, while holding St. Edward’s to just 32.1 percent from the field including a 2-of-14 performance from three point range.

The Hilltoppers opened the game on a 10-2 run, but Chacon quickly answered hitting back-to-back tre’s to pull TAMIU within two. After two St. Edward’s free throws pushed the lead back out to four, Malika Jackson, who finished with 14 points on 6-of-12 shooting, scored five unanswered to give TAMIU their first lead of the game, 13-12 with 9:30 remaining. The Hilltoppers reclaimed the lead on a layup, but Chacon went to work outscoring the opposition 7-2 over the next three minutes to give TAMIU a five point lead. The Dustdevils closed the half on a high note, outscoring St. Edward’s 7-2 over the last two minutes capped by a Jackson three pointer with two seconds remaining to give TAMIU a 30-23 lead at the break.

Four times in the second half the Hilltoppers trimmed the lead down to just one point, but TAMIU remained poised and never trailed in the final frame. Leading by four with 5:53 remaining, Dang led TAMIU on a game changing 10-0 run that took the clock down to its final minute. Over the four minute stretch, St. Edward’s missed five straight shots and turned the ball over five times. Chacon traded free throws with Dawn Kiel in the game’s final 45 seconds to send TAMIU away a winner 65-51.

The win gives TAMIU a 5-6 record in league play, a half-game ahead of Newman University (4-6), who fell to UT-Permian Basin 69-54 Saturday afternoon. The Dustdevils have only one game remaining on the conference schedule, at home versus St. Mary’s, while Newman still has to face Arkansas Fort Smith and St. Edward’s. A win versus St. Mary’s next Saturday coupled with a Newman loss to Arkansas Fort Smith would lock up the fourth spot for TAMIU.

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