SAN MARCOS, TEXAS – Riding the momentum of their first winning streak of the season, the Lions (4-2) will head south for a true test against NCAA Division I opponent Texas State (3-3) of the Sun Belt Conference.
A&M-Commerce hosted a nail-biter over a week ago against Rogers State, mounting a 11-1 run in the final three minutes of regulation to force overtime, eventually prevailing 62-55. Before that, they won 54-52 against Southern Arkansas, holding the Lady Muleriders to the lowest score allowed to an opponent since the 2012-13 season. The last time the Lions dropped a game was nearly three weeks ago, when they fell to Texas A&M-International.
Though the Lions and Bobcats will do battle on the hardwood, the most compelling storyline may center upon the A&M-Commerce bench. Head coach Jason Burton will be returning to Texas State after serving for two years as an assistant for the men's program.
"I'm excited to go to San Marcos and see old faces and old friends," said Burton, "We scheduled this game before conference to give us a tough test before conference. We wanted to be battle-tested against some really good opponents. If we do a good job against Texas State, win or lose, it will help us prepare for conference."
The Lions will continue to lean on senior forward La'Tisha Hearne, who continued her impressive start to the season by earning LSC Defensive Player of the Week veneration following a 20 point, 14 rebound performance against Rogers State. Hearne forced her way to the line a whopping 22 times, draining 16 of her attempts, and added two blocks and a steal. Having also won Offensive Player of the Week honors after the opening week, Hearne has proven to be a threat across all phases of the game.
Natalie Hessong comes off her best game as a Lion to date. Coming off the bench for the first time in her A&M-Commerce career, Hessong nailed four threes in a 14 point effort, shooting 50 percent from deep. The sophomore transfer is lethal when she gets hot, holding the Incarnate Word school record for most threes in a single game with eight.
Senior guard Ashlee Johnson has been a big factor as an offensive facillitator as well as a disruptor of passing lanes. She is currently top-five in the LSC in both assists (3.7 APG) and steals (2.7 SPG), and leads the conference outright in minutes per game (34.8 MPG).
The Bobcats come into 2014-15 following a 16-16 year in which they finished fourth in the Sun Belt by going 12-6 in conference. In their most recent game, a 57-53 win against UT San Antonio, Texas State had three players score in double digits. Tesha Smith provided a double-double (11-12) before fouling out after 23 minutes of action.
Junior guard Erin People has been the top scorer for the Bobcats this season, averaging 14.8 points per game. Not only that, she leads her team in steals with 2.2 SPG, and is also third on her team in rebounding with 6.3 RPG. The distinction of top-rebounder belongs to junior center Kileah Mays, with 7.8 per game. Additionally, she also leads Texas State in blocks per game, with 1.2.
Technically speaking, A&M-Commerce and Texas State have never played one another, at least not in their current incarnations. However, between 1982 and 1984, the teams did face off under different identities, as East Texas State and Southwest Texas State respectively. Having played four times in their histories, the Bobcats control a 3-1 series advantage.
Tipoff is scheduled for Sunday, December 14 at 2 p.m. in Texas State's Strahan Coliseum. After that, the Lions will return home for one last game before Winter Break, where they'll host the East Central Tigers (6-1).
