LAREDO, Texas — Texas A&M International surged in the second half and closed strong at the free-throw line to beat UT Tyler 57–53 on Thursday evening at the Kinesiology Building, opening Lone Star Conference play with a home victory.
TAMIU (2–3, 1–0 LSC) relied on its depth and rebounding advantage to overcome a cold first quarter. Carmen Morcillo led the Dustdevils with 13 points on 4-for-8 shooting from deep, while Angelique Morgan added nine points and seven rebounds. Racheal Emmanuel delivered a dominant performance in the paint, finishing with 14 rebounds, seven points, and two blocks as TAMIU outrebounded UT Tyler 41–30.
After halftime, the Dustdevils erupted for 24 points in the third quarter — their highest-scoring frame of the night — behind four 3-pointers and improved ball movement. Morcillo knocked down two threes during the run, and Morgan added a transition layup to give TAMIU a 43–37 lead entering the fourth.
UT Tyler (4–4, 0–1 LSC) was paced by Hayley Cumming, who scored 13 points with two 3-pointers, and Nikolina Vukcevic, who added 11 off the bench. The Patriots forced 34 turnovers and clawed back to tie the game at 48–48 with just over two minutes remaining behind key plays from Cumming and Mileina Sablinskaite.
But TAMIU responded each time. Emmanuel fed Dacia Jones for a go-ahead layup at the 1:20 mark, and after UT Tyler tied it again at 50–50, Aaliyah McMillan and Jones combined for a pair of defensive stops that set up Morgan's layup with 46 seconds left. Emmanuel and Morgan then sealed the win by knocking down four free throws in the final 10 seconds.
TAMIU finished with 27 bench points and outscored the Patriots 20–13 in fast-break opportunities. UT Tyler shot 30 percent from the field but stayed in the game behind 16 steals and 27 points off turnovers.
The Dustdevils continue conference play Saturday at home. UT Tyler remains on the road for its next LSC matchup.
PLAYER SPOTLIGHT: Carmen Morcillo, Sophomore, comes to Laredo from Granada, Spain. She is the daughter of Alejandro and Maria and has one sister. She is pursuing her degree in Systems Engineering.
A look at Morcillo's performance from tonight:
- Team-high 13 points
- Led the Dustdevils in 3's (4-8)
- Played 30 minutes
