Women's Hoop Report 75
Texas KOs UCLA, Missouri State wins big, Texas A&M escapes another close one
Missouri State 64, Wright State 39
Missouri State (23-2) took Wright State's (19-8) glass slipper and threw it out the window. The mid-major squad from the Horizon League took headlines after beating Arkansas, March 22, in the first round of the Women's NCAA Tournament.
Missouri State took notice of the win and did not mess around. In the first quarter Wright State looked to be continuing its run, holding an 11-10 lead after the period ended. The second and third quarters were a different story. Missouri State rolled off to a 35-16 run and finished things off with a 19-12 advantage in the fourth quarter.
Missouri State senior guard Elle Ruffridge continued her strong post-season play with a season high 20-point game. The five-foot-three senior guard from Pocahontas, Iowa, hit five-of-seven three-pointers. So far in the NCAA Tournament she has connected on seven-of-11 three-point shots.
"I'm just speechless right now," Ruffridge said after the game. "I'm so proud of each and everyone of my teammates, this coaching staff, this moment is just incredible. We're not done. Survive and advance and this is ... [I'm] just soaking it all up right now. This is unreal.
Jasmine Franklin had a double-double with 11 points, 11 boards and two blocks for Missouri State. Guard Brice Calip struggled going two-of-nine from the field but she helped her team by dishing out six assists and pulling down seven rebounds. She also scored nine points, going a perfect five-of-five from the charity stripe.
Wright State made just 14-of-52 shots. The Raiders were led in scoring by Angel Baker and Shamarre Hale. who scored 10 points each.
Texas 71, UCLA 62
UCLA's (17-6) offense arrived late to the game and Texas (20-9) took total advantage of it. At the half, the Longhorns were up 35-14. Yes, 35-14 ... unreal.
The Bruins dug themselves into a hole that they couldn't escape. They outscored Texas 48-36 in the second half but it wasn't enough. UCLA shot an awful one-of-19 from three-point territory.
Above: Celeste Taylor
Texas' top frontcourt player Charli Collier was in foul trouble and had just five points, five rebounds and one block. She normally has a double-double and 20 points scored. Despite her lack of productivity, Texas got quality performances from other players.
Sophomore guard Celeste Taylor matched her season high with 24 points. She hit nine-of-17 shots, and also hauled down five boards, with a steal. Texas guard Kyra Lambert had her best game of the season. The five-foot-nine senior from San Antonio, Texas, put up 17 points, 10 rebounds and four assists. It was her first double-double of the season. Wednesday night's win was just her sixth time scoring more than 10 points in a game during her senior year. Texas also got 16 points from Joanne Allen-Taylor who hit three-of-seven triples.
Michaela Onyenwere led UCLA with 21 points. The six-foot guard finished the season with four straight games with at least 21 points. She averaged 19.1 points for the entire season.
Texas A&M 84, Iowa State 82
Above: Texas A&M
After a narrow win over Michigan State, Iowa State (17-11) ran into a Texas A&M (25-2) team that had also been battle tested in the first round. Texas A&M almost loss to a 15 seed in Troy, winning 84-80.
Texas A&M outlasted Iowa State in an 84-82 overtime win, Wednesday night to advance to the Sweet 16.
Iowa State star Ashley Joens left it all out on the floor scoring 32 points and pulling down a season high 18 rebounds. Texas A&M's Jordan Nixon combated Joens with an impressive shooting performance. She made 16-of-28 shots on her way to a career high of 35 points. While not playing on a Cinderella team, Nixon is a bit of a solo Cinderella story. The five-foot-eight sophomore scored 21 points in the first round. During the first 23 games of the season she averaged just 9.2 points per game, while shooting 43.6 percent. Over her last four games she averaged 20.5 points and hit 54.1 percent of her shots.
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