PORTALES, N.M. – The Eastern New Mexico women’s basketball team is prepared to face its third regionally ranked opponent in a six-day stretch as the Hounds will host Lone Star Conference rival and nationally eighth-ranked West Texas A&M, presented by Big Valley Auto at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday.
The matchup features two of the top teams in the conference as the Greyhounds (12-4, 7-1 LSC) enter the week in a tie for first atop the standings while the Lady Buffs (14-2, 6-2 LSC) hold the No. 3 spot.
LAST TIME OUT
Eastern is coming off its two best performances of the season last week as the Hounds rallied to defeat the No. 9 team in the South Central region in Tarleton State 73-67 on Thursday before following it up with a 90-79 win over Texas A&M-Commerce.
In the TSU game presented by Wells Fargo, the Greyhounds had to overcome as much as nine-point deficit in the third quarter before rallying back to take their first lead of the half on a Shelby Jones layup to make it 61-60 with 4:18 left in the fourth quarter. After the TexAnns reclaimed the lead at 65-63 with 2:56 to go, Treyanna Clay propelled the Hounds back in-front with six consecutive points that ultimately ignited a 10-2 run. As the Greyhounds held a 69-67 lead with 16 seconds left, Zamorye Cox knocked down a clutch three-pointer to put Eastern up by two possessions to seal the victory.
In Saturday’s game against Texas A&M-Commerce, presented by Roosevelt General Hospital, Eastern got off to a hot start, opening the game with a 10-0 run through the first 2:23 that featured a pair of three-pointers from Clay and Chelsea Hunter, as well as a Jones jumper and a pair of Alivia Lewis free throws. The Lions managed to narrow the gap to four at 18-14 with 59 seconds remaining in the first quarter, but that was the closest TAMU-C would trim the deficit as Eastern responded with a 10-0 run between the end of the first period and the start of the second to stretch the advantage back to 28-14. Eastern built its lead up to as much as 22 in the third quarter and a Cox three-pointer with 5:01remaining in the fourth quarter gave Eastern a 77-57 edge, putting the game effectively out-of-reach for the Lions.
SCOUTING THE LADY BUFFS
West Texas A&M enters the week with a 14-2 overall record and a 6-2 mark in Lone Star Conference play. The eighth-ranked team in the country and No. 3 team in the South Central region split a pair of home games last week, defeating Texas A&M-Commerce 81-70 on Thursday before falling to Tarleton State 72-65 on Saturday.
The Lady Buffs are led by the top scorer in the LSC in senior forward Tyesha Taylor, averaging 16.4 points per game and possesses the best shooting percentage in the conference at 67 percent. Taylor is not only the team’s leading shot blocker, but also ranks second in the LSC with 29 blocks at a 1.8 blocks per game clip. West Texas has seen an emergence in the play of junior guard Lexy Hightower since the start of conference play. Hightower ranks second on the team at 14.2 ppg, but is currently the top scorer in LSC games at 17.8 ppg.
Leading the Lady Buffs rebounding efforts is senior guard Deleyah Harris with 125 rebounds, averaging 7.8 rpg. Junior guard Megan Gamble is the primary catalyst for the WTAMU offense with an LSC leading 76 assists (5.8 apg).
HISTORY WITH THE LADY BUFFS
Since the series inception in 1975, West Texas A&M leads the all-time series with a 72-16 record. In their last meeting on Jan. 25, 2018 in Canyon, the Greyhounds fought back from a 17-point deficit to stun the Lady Buffs 73-71 in overtime. Senior guard Mikaehla Connor knocked down a layup on Eastern’s final possession of regulation to tie it while the defense came up with a huge block at the buzzer to send the game to overtime. After the Lady Buffs jumped out to an early two-point edge in the extra period, the Hounds strung together a 10-4 run over a four-minute stretch to pull away with the victory.
CLIMBING THE RANKS
The Hounds continued to climb up the D2SIDA South Central Regional Poll this week after they picked up their first two wins against regionally-ranked opponents last week. The Hounds first defeated then ninth-ranked Tarleton State 73-67 on Thursday before topping then No. 7 ranked Texas A&M-Commerce on Saturday. The TexAnns and Lions are still ranked in this week’s poll with TSU climbing to eighth while TAMU-C fell to ninth. The Hounds currently hold a 2-2 record against regionally-ranked teams after Eastern dropped a pair of tough matches at No. 2 Angelo State and at No. 5 Lubbock Christian earlier this season.
QUEEN OF THE HILL
Before entering last week’s contests, there was a four-way tie for first place at the top of the Lone Star Conference standings between Eastern New Mexico, Angelo State, West Texas A&M, and Texas A&M-Commerce. With the Hounds sweeping their contests, the Lady Buffs losing to Tarleton State and the Lions losing both their games, ENMU and Angelo State currently occupy the top spot in the LSC. This week, the two teams will continue to duke it out for first as ENMU will be tasked with facing West Texas A&M and Texas Woman’s at home while Angelo State hosts Cameron and MSU Texas.
HOME SWEET HOME
While the Hounds have faced some tough challenges on the road this season, they have played remarkably well on their home court. Eastern holds a perfect 7-0 record in Greyhound Arena and are 4-0 in LSC games. The last time the Greyhounds won seven straight at home to open the season was during the 1992-93 season when ENMU finished with a 23-5 record and a 12-2 mark in conference play to win its first ever Lone Star Conference Championship.
RACKING UP THE WEEKLY ACCOLADES
After getting the two big wins last week, Eastern swept the Lone Star Conference Player of the Week awards as senior forward Treyanna Clay was the recipient of the Offensive Player of the Week award while sophomore forward Alivia Lewis was rewarded the Defensive Player of the Week honor.
Clay won her first offensive award after leading the Hounds scoring efforts with 18.5 ppg while shooting 52 percent from the floor, 67 percent from the three-point arc and converted 13-of-19 free throw attempts. In the TSU match, Clay scored all 15 of her points in the second half, including six points during a crucial 10-2 run in the final three minutes of the game to pull away with the 73-67 victory. Clay followed it up with her second 20-point contest of the season with 22 points on 6-of-10 shooting, including 2-for-3 from three-point range and made 8-of-12 free throw attempts in the 90-79 win over Texas A&M-Commerce.
Lewis took home her second Defensive Player of the Week Award after notching 11.5 ppg, 11.5 rpg, 3.5 apg and 2.5 bpg. Against the TexAnns, Lewis finished just a point shy of a double-double with nine points and 12 rebounds while tying a season-high four assists and three blocks. She managed to break the double-double barrier against the Lions, tying her career-high with 14 points and recorded 11 rebounds to go with three assists and two blocks. Lewis became the first player in the Lone Star to earn two Defensive Player of the Week awards after she earning her first following the Hounds wins over New Mexico Highlands and Fort Lewis to open the regular season.
POWERFUL POST
In just her second year with the program, Lewis has made a strong mark with her defensive play in the low post. After recording 23 rebounds last week, she has continued to solidify her spot as the top rebounder in the LSC, averaging 9.6 rpg and 10.4 rpg in conference games. Lewis also continues to climb the shot blocking ranks in the conference after recording five more blocks, placing third on the list with 28 total blocks (1.8 bpg) and second in LSC games with 17 (2.1 bpg).
SENIORS STEPPING UP
On top of the strong contributions from Clay, the Hounds have also been getting some great play out of senior forward Shelby Jones. The Clovis, N.M. native put together one of her best performances of the season against the Lions, nearly recording a double-double with eight points and a season-best nine rebounds. Jones was a huge part of the Hounds’ offensive efficiency as she set a new career-high with six assists, topping her previous best of five set earlier this season at Oklahoma Christian.
