Last week proved to be an exciting week in Lady Buffs women’s basketball, as they went on to defeat the Midwestern State Mustangs in overtime 88-77 on Feb. 12 before returning to Canyon to host Cameron on Feb. 15. WTAMU easily defeated Cameron by shooting efficiently and being aggressive on defense. With these victories, WT clinched at least a share of the LSC regular season championship.
On Feb. 12, the Lady Buffs struggled early thanks to strong defense by Midwestern State, forcing 13 turnovers in the game. With eight minutes left in the half, Midwestern State tied up the game but WT was able to go on an 8-0 run The Lady Buffs forced six turnovers gain the upper hand going into halftime up 38-33.
Coming out of the half, both teams traded the lead until WT went up by six with 3:25 left in the game. The Lady Buffs committed several fouls in the closing minutes of the game and Midwestern hit a clutch three pointer with 21.4 seconds left to tie the game at 71.
In the overtime, both teams exchanged leads in the first minute. For WT, Sally Higgins made one of two free throws and scored on a steal putting WT up 78-75. WT continued to play aggressive and finished the game on top outscoring Midwestern 17-6 to win 88-77.
“I was proud how we were able to close out the game after a rough start in the first half,” Head Coach Mark Kellogg said. “It took a lot to get back on the right track. We’re going to have those games someday.”
The win gave WT the sweep of the season series for the first time since the 2009-2010 season. It also was the first win in Wichita Falls dating back to Jan. 2010.
On Feb. 15, Cameron came out strong, going up 18-14 with 10 minutes left in the first half. However, the Lady Buffs went on a 17-3 run, thanks to an aggressive defense. This prompted the Lady Buffs to move to a comfortable 40-27 lead going into halftime. WT continued the offensive explosion, going up 66-33 with nine minutes to play in the game. Going back to eight minutes left in the first half, the Lady Buffs outscored Cameron, 43-9.
Devin Griffin led the Lady Buffs had 20 points, nine rebounds and five steals. Sally Higgins and Lacee Logan contributed to the winning effort coming off of the bench scoring 12 and 11 points respectively.
The Lady Buffs were able to close out the game and won big 83-57.
The Lady Buffs travel to Tarleton State on Feb.19 with a 6 p.m. tipoff for an opportunity to clinch with the LSC title outright.
