Kingsville - After a furious late comeback fell just short of taking down the Texas A&M-International Dustdevils in Kingsville on Tuesday, the Texas A&M-Kingsville women's basketball team is heading to Laredo to take on TAMIU for the second time this week, with tipoff set for 1:00 p.m. on Saturday.

Since the turn of the calendar, the Javelinas have taken a significant step forward, getting the first two wins of their season and averaging 65.25 points per game, nearly a 15-ppg increase from the 2025 portion of their schedule. TAMUK will have a chance to carry this momentum into an opportunity to pay back International for its two-point win over the Javelians in Kingsville earlier this week and even up the season series against the Dustdevils.

"So much of our success comes down to discipline and decision-making," Head Coach Michael Madrid said. "Being consistent in many areas."

Despite a loss on Tuesday, Kingsville got career days from its two redshirt juniors, as guard Kaycee Groves and forward Kaylee Howell combined for 38 points. Both will look to continue their stretch of solid play into the weekend, as each had career days, with Groves collecting 20 points, 11 rebounds, seven assists, (all season highs) two steals, and block, despite playing through foul trouble for much of the second half. Howell added a career-high 18 points, nine of which came in the fourth quarter during TAMUK's comeback attempt.

The recent play between the two programs has been an even match, with the Javelinas winning six of the last 10 matchups with the Dustdevils, including two of the last three.

Scouting the Competition: The Texas A&M-International Dustdevils (8-6, 5-3 LSC)

After a slow (2-6) start to the season, the Dustdevils have now put together six straight wins, including four straight in LSC play, heading into Saturday's afternoon showdown with the Javelinas. Their most recent win on that streak came by two points, 73-71, over TAMUK when the two teams faced off in Kingsville on Tuesday night.

Though they have struggled to shoot the ball effectively (14th in the LSC in FG%), International has been excellent at giving themselves extra possessions by both crushing the offensive glass (15.1, second in the LSC), and forcing turnovers (22.4, third in the LSC). 

Though she's played in just five games for TAMIU (the team's five most recent games), junior guard Jayden Smallwood leads the team in scoring with 14.6 points per game, and has racked up 10 steals over those four matchups. Senior center Rachael Emmanuel locks down the middle for the Dustdevils. Not only is she the conference's second leading rebounder, but she is also just shy of averaging a double-double on the season (10.4ppg, 9.8rpg).

"We need to limit our turnovers and their offensive rebounds," Madrid said. "Every game. Not just this game. We need to be better in those areas every time we step on the floor."

Javelina Quick Hitters:

• Redshirt junior guard Kaycee Groves is coming off of one of the best all-around games of her career on Tuesday, in which she collected 20 points (season high), 12 rebounds (season high, T-career high), seven assists (career high), two steals, and one block on 7-of-13 shooting from the field and 4-of-6 shooting from deep
• Freshman guard Jadeyn Perez was spectacular in the first two starts of her collegiate career last weekend, highlighted by a 24-point explosion in a win over Oklahoma Christian last Sunday - the most points scored by a Javelina freshman in a conference game since at least the 2013-14 season
• TAMUK has been excellent on the boards so far this year, and is third the conference on the glass, holding opponents to just 31.5 total rebounds per game - Its average rebound margin of +2.2 per game is the sixth-best in the LSC
• Kingsville's offense has improved as the year has gone alone, and now ranks sixth in the conference in team assists per game (13.2) - Groves leads the way in that regard, her 2.8 assists per game are the eight-most in the LSC - sophomore guard Addisyn Parker's 2.5 are the 11th-most
• In the seven Lone Star Conference games that the team has played so far, redshirt junior guard Kaycee Groves leads the team in both scoring (11.9), rebounds (5.9), assists (3.3, fourth in the LSC), steals (14), and blocks (6), while Parker has shot the lights out, shooting 48.4% from three (fifth in the LSC), and making 2.1 per game (sixth in the LSC)
• Sophomore forward Thalia Daniels has had a strong start to her career in the blue and gold, leading the team in rebounding with 5.8 per game
• While she leads a team effort on the glass, the Javelinas' success on the boards has been a team affair, as she is one of five different Javelinas who all average at least 4.0 rebounds per game
• The second-winningest Head Coach in program history, Michael Madrid is beginning his seventh year at the helm for the Javelinas just 9 LSC wins from passing Jill Wilson for the most conference wins in program history
• Madrid and the Javelinas are seeking a berth to the LSC Tournament for the second straight year and the fourth time in the last five seasons