San Antonio - A great defensive performance and clutch buckets fueled the Texas A&M - Kingsville women's basketball team to a 50-46 win over the Rattlers of St. Mary's in San Antonio.
Though the Rattlers made it close in the closing moments, underclassmen and veterans alike made big plays down the stretch to secure the win. TAMUK's defense held St. Mary's to 38.6% shooting from the floor and 20.0% from three. It also forced 19 Rattler turnovers.
The win is the first for the team in the new calendar year and the seventh in its season. The Javelinas are now 7-5 overall and an even 3-3 in Lone Star Conference play.
"A win is a win and a win on the road in conference is always fun," Head Coach
Michael Madrid said. "Neither team was great offensively but we did just make a few plays down the stretch."
Among a number of great individual performances for the Javelinas was redshirt sophomore
Kaycee Groves, who dropped a career-high 18 points in her first ever collegiate start. She provided key buckets for Kingsville from start to finish, and, as she's done all year, stuffed the stat sheet. Aside from her scoring, which was the highest mark in the game, Groves added eight rebounds (tied for a career high), two assists, two blocks, and three steals. It is Groves' fourth-straight game with multiple steals, and her third in the last four with three.
"Kaycee took advantage of opportunities," Madrid said. "She knocked down some shots and defended well. Our team does a really good job of taking advantage of what the defense gives us and tonight was her opportunity."
Senior forward
Janessa Payne joined Groves with a double-digit scoring effort, dropping 11 points on 3-of-7 shooting from distance. Though her scoring total and attempted shots were below her usual, junior forward
Shelby Ray found plenty of other ways to help her team. She added team-highs in rebounds and assists, with nine and five of each, as well as a steal and a block.
Though they ceded the first bucket of the game, Kingsville scored the next seven points, grabbing a quick early lead. It wasn't long before the team mounted a second seven-to-nothing run, closing out the first quarter on another one to take a 16-6 lead through the first ten minutes.
Following the first frame, the game became a dead heat, with each team playing intense defense and neither able to get their offensive games going. The scoring in the middle two quarters was separated by just one point, with the Javelinas scoring 19 total and holding the Rattlers to nine each in the second and third quarters.
The fourth quarter, however, brought drama, as St. Mary's was finally able to convert offensively, turning defense into quick scores and drawing within a possession multiple times late in the contest. One such time, as the game entered its final three minutes, Groves capped her night with a clutch triple, doubling TAMUK's lead up to six points. From there, defense, free-throws, and a Ray-to-
Abby Bala baseball-pass connection for a key two points, allowed Kingsville to secure its win.
The Javelinas have now won five of their last six matchups with the Rattlers - they have held their Rattlers to 56 or fewer points in each of those wins. It is also the second win for Kingsville in its last three regular-season outings.
Kingsville will be on the road again on Sunday when they face off with the Hilltoppers from St. Edwards in Austin with a 1 p.m. tipoff.
