UTEP improves to 3-0 after home win against Texas A&M Kingsville, 63-55
(Courtesy: UTEP Basketball)
EL PASO, Texas - UTEP women’s basketball earned a hard-fought 63-55 victory against a solid Texas A&M – Kingsville side Tuesday night in the Don Haskins Center.
Jane Asinde and Delma Zita finished in double-figures for the Miners.
Asinde recorded her second double-double in as many games, leading all players with 26 points to go with 12 rebounds. Zita had a career-high 13 points, five rebounds, a team-leading four assists, and two steals.
Erin Wilson once again cleaned up on the glass, pulling in a career-best and team-high 14 boards. Mahri Petree tied her career-high in steals with four.
“We got some big offensive rebounds down the stretch,” UTEP head coach Keitha Adams said. ”Erin (Wilson) got some big boards, I thought Jane got some offensive rebounds and putbacks. The rebounding definitely got us over that. We did some unorthodox stuff down there at the end, Delma (Zita) was the ball screener for Jane (Asinde). Usually it’s the other way, but we flipped it, and Jane took it to the house. We have to get our free-throw shooting improved, we need more fast break points.”
The game got off to an interesting start, as Asinde and one of the referees collided just after opening tip, with both needing medical attention.
Once the game resumed, it was a bit of back and forth between the two sides.
Asinde didn’t let the early drama shake her, scoring 10 of the team’s 13 points in the first quarter, including a buzzer-beater in the dying seconds of the period to put the Miners up 13-11.
Zita and Adhel Tac scored two and one point, respectively.
Zita led the team in rebounds with three, all coming on the defensive glass.
Wilson followed close behind with two, while Tac, Asinde, and Petree had one apiece.
The second quarter continued where the first left off, and neither team could pull ahead by much. Wilson contributed four points, Zita had three, and Tac, Asinde, Aaliyah Stanton, and Luisa Vydrova all scored two each. Wilson also tallied three rebounds in the period.
The Javelinas held the two-point advantage (30-28) going into the halftime break.
The Miners shot 40 percent from the floor and 37.5 percent from the line.
They tallied 16 rebounds, seven steals, and eight assists.
The visitors came out hot to start the third period, going on a 7-0 run to go up nine points. The Miners were able to fight their way back into it but remained down three (48-45) at the end of the quarter. Zita and Asinde paced the Miners with six points each, while Tac added three and Petree nailed a pair of free throws to add two. Asinde led the way with three rebounds, Petree, Wilson, and Zita had two apiece, and Tac added one. Petree also recorded a block and an assist in the third.
The Orange and Blue came alive in the final period. Five Miners scored, led by Asinde with eight. Wilson added four and Petree, Zita, and Stanton all notched two. Wilson and Asinde’s efforts on the boards helped ice the game, with six and five in the fourth quarter, respectively. All five rebounds for Asinde were on the defensive end.
UTEP finished shooting 41.5 percent from the floor and 50.0 percent from the charity stripe. A stout fourth quarter pushed the Miners to 43 rebounds.
They finished the night with 10 assists, nine steals, and one block. UTEP scored 34 points in the paint, had 16 second-chance points, and eight fast-break points.
A trio of Javelina players scored in double digits, led by Janessa Payne with 11.
Giorgia Ohiaeri and Veyda Lake each scored 10. Mia Rivers and Jay Tschritter both had eight, Abby Bala had four, and Devon Williams, and Alyssa O’Malley both contributed two. A&M – Kingsville grabbed 25 total rebounds, led by Rivers with six. Payne was right behind with five and Shelby Ray had four.
The Javelinas shot 50 percent from the floor, including 40 percent from beyond the arc (4-10) and 55.6 percent from the foul line.
UP NEXT
The Miners head on the road for the first road tilt of the season when they face California Baptist on Saturday (11/18) at 12 p.m. MT. After that, UTEP will head to the opposite coast to face Lamar (11/22) and TCU (11/23) at the St. Pete Showcase in St. Petersburg, Fla.
TICKETS
Season tickets are available now for $65 or sit courtside for $150. Tickets can be purchased through the Eisenberg Family Ticket Office by calling (915) 747-UTEP, emailing tickets@utep.edu, visiting www.UTEPMiners.com/Tickets, or in person at 201 Glory Road (Brumbelow Building, UTEP Campus), Monday-Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
