Kingsville – The Texas Woman’s University Pioneers started quickly and never let up in beating the Texas A&M-Kingsville Javelinas 72-47 in the Lone Star Conference South Division opener at Kleberg Bank Court. The win improved TWU to 5-4 while the Javelinas fall to 2-7.
Lana Toki was the only Javelina to score in double figures, posting her third double-double of the season with 21 points and 12 rebounds.
Savannah Thompson led three Pioneers in double figures with 20 points.
TWU led 46-25 at the half and scored the first 12 points of the second half to put the game away.
The Javelinas shot just under 27 percent from the floor while the Pioneers made 50 percent of their shots.
Texas A&M-Kingsville out-rebounded TWU 46-37 and made 12 steals, four by Kayla Naylor and three each by Toki and Dyana Bullinger.
Both leading scorers and star post players, Toki and Pioneer center Margaret Wimbish, picked up fouls in the first two minutes of the game and went to the bench.
It didn’t seem to affect TWU as much as they hit a trio of early 3-point baskets to grab a 13-5 lead four and a half minutes into the game.
The lead grew to 12, 19-7, as the Javelinas hit just two of their first seven shots and turned the ball over four times.
Things didn’t improve much the rest of the half as the Pioneer lead grew to as many as 22 points and settled at 21 points at the intermission, 46-25.
TWU shot 58 percent from the floor in the first half while the Javelinas shot just 31 percent.
Toki led the Javelinas in scoring in the first half with 13 of the team’s 25 points.
The Pioneers made 6 of 11 3-point attempts while the Javelinas managed to make just 1 of 9.
