KINGSVILLE, Texas – For the first time in 2018, the Steinke Physical Education Center will come alive for Javelina basketball, as the Texas A&M-Kingsville women's basketball team gets set for a pair of home contests, first on Thursday when they'll take on the UT Permian Basin Falcons at 5:15 p.m. and again on Saturday, when the No. 2 West Texas A&M Lady Buffs visit the SPEC for a 4 p.m. tip-off.
The Javelinas (3-11, 0-6) will be attempting to thwart both opponents and pick up a win on their home floor for first time since November, when they dropped Texas A&M International, 46-43. The Hoggies continue to sport a strong defense, evidenced by their average of 59.6 points-per-game allowed, third in the Lone Star Conference. They've also permitted opponents to shoot just 27.7% from beyond the arc, also third-best in the conference.
Offensively, TAMUK is still searching for an identity, but they have two players coming off their best showings of the year. Senior Emmeri Archer set a new career high against Tarleton on Jan. 6th with 15 points and junior Shaq Debose also racked up 15 points while shooting 5-of-9 from the field and sinking all five of her free throw attempts. The Javs will also be looking for production out of Angelica Wilson, who last season picked up a double-double in Kingsville's second matchup with UTPB, totaling 10 points and 12 rebounds.
The Falcons have been a streaky team so far this season. Five straight losses to begin the year were followed by three straight wins and then three consecutive defeats. After winning two of their last three, coach Rae Booth brings her squad to Kingsville with a record of 5-9 and 3-3 in conference play, which puts them in eighth place and in possession of the final spot in the LSC tournament. The greatest strength for UTPB so far this season has been their ability to win the turnover battle. Their average turnover margin of +5.07 ranks them second-best in the LSC.
Booth is in her first year at the helm of the program after taking over for Jerome Willis, who had coached at the school since 2012. The Brenau University graduate came to Odessa after seven seasons guiding the women's program at Friends University in Wichita, Kan. Booth posted a record of 159-69 with the Falcons and coached the team to five appearances in the NAIA National Tournament.
The initial year in charge for the Falcons' new head coach has her commanding a roster of 17 student-athletes, six of whom are seniors. The team's leading scorer, however, is junior Khali Pippins-Tryon, who's put together an average of more than 11 ppg. The transfer from Lamar University kicked-off with a 32-point day against Fort Lewis, but on Thursday will be trying to break a streak of four consecutive games in which she's failed to reach double figures.
West Texas A&M, who will play Angelo State on Thursday before coming to Kingsville, currently stands as the LSC's only undefeated team at 14-0 with six of those victories coming against league foes. The only one of their wins to be decided by single digits was a 58-53 contest against Regis University on Nov. 11th. The Lone Star Conference team that played the Lady Buffs the toughest was Midwestern State on Jan. 4th. The Mustangs trailed by just point at halftime and by six points entering the final period before WT stretched out their lead to win by 18.
The Lady Buffs not only rank at the top of the LSC in a number of categories, but they've also put themselves among the best in the country in several statistics. Offensively, they've risen to second nationally in field goal percentage and are tied for sixth in assists per game. On defense, they've allowed the second fewest ppg in the nation and are fourth in field goal percentage defense. They haven't allowed any opponent to reach 65 points. West Texas has also hit the glass to the tune of the NCAA's 10th-best rebounding margin.
A pair of sophomores have been the catalysts for WT's resurgence. Lexy Hightower ranks sixth in the LSC in ppg with a mark of 13.6. Her last time out, she burned Cameron for 18 and the guard from Amarillo has also poured in 21 points twice. Hightower also leads the team by a wide margin in three-point attempts, makes and shooting percentage. Fellow guard Megan Gamble has not been as adept at scoring, but she's distributed the basketball to the tune of 4.1 apg, tops in the LSC. Her season-high in that category stands at seven, a benchmark she's reached twice.
In both contests, the Javelinas will be attempting to make up ground in the all-time series. The Falcons hold a slim, 4-3 edge over the Hoggies but TAMUK took both matchups with UTPB a year ago and will be looking to continue that trend on Thursday. West Texas holds a much more commanding lead in their series with Kingsville. In 66 meetings, the Lady Buffs have won 57 times, including the last 16-in-a-row. The last victory in the series for the Javs came in Feb. of 2009.
For comprehensive coverage of both games, including live audio with Mark Inserra behind the microphone, live video and stats and postgame recaps, visit Javelinaathletics.com. To receive content for Texas A&M-Kingsville women's basketball, you can follow @TAMUKWBB on Twitter and Instagram, like the official Facebook page of Javelina athletics (/JavelinaSports) and subscribe to the Javelina Athletics YouTube channel.
