Khadija Brown-Haywood wasn't as productive as she had been, and Aundrea Gamble didn't get going until the second half.
But the Arkansas State women's basketball team won for the eighth consecutive game behind Jessica Flanery, a senior who scored a career-high 24 points in a 74-59 victory over Texas State on Saturday in San Marcos, Texas.
Flanery, whose previous high was 15 points, was 9 of 14 from the floor and she made 6 of 9 three-pointers for the Red Wolves, who were otherwise 1 of 9 from three-point range as a team.
Brown-Haywood, who had a career-high 29 points in Thursday's victory at Texas-Arlington, had 14 points and 9 rebounds but was 0 of 6 from three-point range. Gamble had 23 points, with 10 coming in a third quarter that allowed ASU to pull away.
The Red Wolves (14-3, 8-0) have now won eight in a row to start the Sun Belt Conference season for the first time ever after shooting 40.8 percent from the field, including 46.9 percent in the second half. Led by Brown-Haywood, ASU held a 42-28 rebounding edge, which led to 19 second-chance points.
ASU also scored 18 points off 21 Texas State turnovers, leading to 19 more shots from the floor to help counter Texas State's 10-for-18 three-point shooting.
Raven Burns had 13 points to lead four Bobcats (9-8, 4-3) with 10 or more points
ASU led 21-13 after the first quarter, as Flanery hit 3 three-pointers, but only 36-31 at halftime. Texas State got within 36-35 early in the third quarter before ASU went on a 21-3 run with Gamble scoring eight of the points to go up 57-38 with 2:52 left in the third quarter.
Texas State got within 67-57 halfway through the fourth quarter, but Gamble hit a jumper, Amanda Lawson a three-pointer and Flanery a layup to put the game out of reach. After Texas State got within 67-57, ASU strung together five consecutive defensive stops.
ASU, which returns home for its next four games, can match its best start to a season with a victory Thursday against Georgia State.
UALR 59,
TEXAS-ARLINGTON 55
Shanity James came off the bench to score 15 points, and UALR snapped a two-game losing streak with a victory at Texas-Arlington.
Two days after a loss at Texas State, Kaitlyn Pratt added 12 points for the Trojans and Alexius Dawn busted out of a shooting slump for 10 points to help Coach Joe Foley earn his 250th victory in 13 seasons at the school.
UALR (6-11, 4-4 Sun Belt Conference) also snapped a three-game losing streak on the home floors of Sun Belt foes, despite being outrebounded 31-26, which led to 10 second-chance points for Texas-Arlington (7-10, 2-5). Amara Wainwright led Texas-Arlington with 14 points.
Pratt scored at least 10 points for the fourth consecutive game and for the fifth time in eight Sun Belt games. For a third consecutive game Foley adjusted his starting lineup, choosing to go with guards Monique Townson, Kira Shepard and Sharde’ Collins and forwards Pratt and Amber Landing, who started for the first time. It helped the Trojans jump to a 18-13 lead after the first quarter.
Texas-Arlington trimmed the lead to 26-24 at halftime and tied the game at 32-32 with a Rebekah VanDijk layup halfway through the third quarter. But Pratt answered with a layup, and Collins followed with a three-pointer to make it 37-32. The Trojans led 42-35 entering the fourth quarter.
SOUTHLAND WOMEN
CENTRAL ARKANSAS 71,
NICHOLLS STATE 65
Facing a halftime deficit for the first time in two weeks, the Central Arkansas women’s basketball team took control in the third quarter Saturday. A 13-3 run over a four-minute stretch of the third quarter gave UCA the lead and though the Bears never pulled away, they hung on for a victory over Nicholls State at Thibodaux, La..
UCA’s Maggie Proffitt scored 18 points on 7-of-13 shooting and 3 of 6 from three-point range for UCA (16-2, 6-1), which won for the sixth consecutive time and stayed in second place in the Southland Conference standings. Proffitt led UCA through the key stretch, too. The junior was held to two points in the first half as Nicholls State (6-11, 4-3), which had won three in a row, took a 29-25 lead. The Colonels then led 33-27 early in the third quarter before Kendara Watts scored inside to get UCA within 33-29.
After UCA forced a turnover, Proffitt hit a three-pointer to get within 33-32, and on the next possession, Proffitt hit another three to get within 36-35. Taylor Strickland hit a jumper to give UCA the lead at 37-36, and Proffitt capped the run with another three to make it 40-36 with 4:34 left in the quarter.
Proffitt capped her 11-point third quarter with a jumper to give UCA a 47-44 lead and it led 49-46 heading into the fourth quarter, where it extended the lead to 61-52 with 4:12 left. The Sugar Bears closed out the victory to stay unbeaten on the road in Southland play.
Mullins and Taylor Baudoin each added 14 points for the Sugar Bears, while Watts had 10.
SWAC WOMEN
PRAIRIE VIEW A&M 70,
UAPB 55
UAPB had an 11-point second-quarter lead disappear before halftime and eventually fell to the Lady Panthers at W.J. Nicks Arena in Prairie View, Texas.
The Lady Lions (4-13, 1-5 Southwestern Athletic Conference) led 15-10 after the first quarter and built the lead to 30-19 with 5:12 left in the second quarter. Prairie View A&M (7-8, 3-3) closed the quarter on a 17-2 run to lead 36-32 at halftime.
The Lady Panthers scored nine of the first 11 points of the third quarter to open a 47-34 lead and closed the quarter with a 56-41 advantage.
UAPB trimmed the deficit to nine points three times in the fourth quarter. The Lady Lions got it to 64-55 after a Diamond Richardson layup with 1:02 left, but Prairie View scored the game’s final six points to set the final margin.
The Lady Panthers had four players with 12 or more points, led by Monique Abbs and Anikki McMillian with 15 apiece.
Richardson led UAPB with 16 points, while teammate Niya Head had 14 to go with a game-high 11 rebounds.
UAPB outrebounded Prairie View 43-31 but was forced into 22 turnovers to just 10 for the Lady Panthers.
The Lady Lions had more field goals (23-22) but were outscored 18-6 at the free-throw line.
SWAC MEN
UAPB 45,
PRAIRIE VIEW A&M 44
UAPB’S Austin Cox blocked Tevin Bellinger’s last-second shot attempt to secure the Golden Lions’ victory Saturday night at W.J. Nicks Arena in Prairie View, Texas.
The Golden Lions (4-16, 2-4 Southwestern Athletic Conference) trailed 44-42 with 10 seconds remaining after two Bellinger free throws. Charles Jackson’s jumper with four seconds left tied the score 44-44, but the Panthers (1-17, 1-5) called for a timeout they didn’t have, resulting in a technical foul. Jackson missed the first technical free throw but made the second to give UAPB the onepoint lead.
Prairie View raced down the floor for a final attempt, which Cox knocked away at the buzzer.
The Golden Lions led 25-15 at halftime but were outscored 13-4 to begin the second half as the Panthers cut the deficit to 29-28 with 12:54 remaining.
Prairie View had taken a three-point lead, 37-34, on two Bellinger free throws with 5:59 to play, but Ghiavonni Robinson made a three-pointer for the Golden Lions as the game went back and forth the remainder of the way.
Bellinger led all scorers with 17 points, while Jayrn Johnson added 13 for the Panthers.
Robinson, Marquis Cunningham and JoVaughn Love all had 11 points for the Golden Lions.
UAPB shot 41.3 percent from the field, while limiting Prairie View to 26.4 percent.
Sports on 01/24/2016