Lawton, Oklahoma—A busy day in the Lone Star Conference features a road victory for A&M-Commerce against Cameron 62-56.

TEAM LEADERS
A&M-Commerce
Points: Artaejah Gay, 17
Rebounds: Artaejah Gay, 11
Assists: Shomari Harris, 6
Steals: Four players with four steals each
Blocks: None

Cameron
Points: Dayla Threatt, 16
Rebounds: Savanna James, 6
Assists: Two players with three assists each
Steals: Brittany Hill, 4
Blocks: DJ Vallier, 1
 
1st Half
The Lions had a strong first quarter forcing ten Aggie turnovers and scoring five points off of them. On the offensive end, the Lions lived in the paint, outscoring Cameron 14-4. In the opening quarter, the Lions shot 47.1 percent from the floor and ended the first quarter with an 18-10 lead.
 
Cameron made the game closer in the second quarter after outscoring the Lions 12-11 as both teams headed to the locker rooms for the intermission. Fortunately for the Lions, the Aggies struggled with their shooting, connecting on only 2-of10 attempts from three-point range, and shot 33.3 percent from the field. The Lions went into the half with a 29-22 lead despite being outrebounded by the Aggies 21-17. In the first half, the Lions shot 37.1 percent from the floor and 33.3 percent from beyond the arc. Krystal Pickron and Artaejah Gay led the way in scoring for the Lions with seven points each, while Gay also led the Lions with four total rebounds. Charro Montgomery is the Aggies leading scorer with seven points as well followed by six points from Dayla Threatt.
 
2nd Half
The Aggies erased a seven-point lead quickly after back-to-back treys by Dayla Threatt and eventually tied the game at 37. The Lions struck back though going on a 6-0 run, retaining a 43-37 lead. The Aggies answered back by ending the quarter on their own 4-0 run, and outscored the Lions 19-14 in the third quarter. The Lions 4-of-6 shooting from the free throw line kept them afloat as they went into the fourth quarter with a 43-41 lead.
 
The final quarter started fast after Gabby Scott drained her second triple of the game to give the Lions a 46-41 lead. Once the Lions opened their lead to nine points, the Aggies made it rain with the three ball with two consecutive threes from Brandi Leal and Brittany Hill cutting into the Lions lead 52-49. Late in the final period, the Lions found themselves up by eight points until the Aggies again fought back. Hill recorded a steal, sprinted down the court for a layup while being fouled, and hit the free throw to bring Cameron back within three points with one minute remaining in the game. From that point, the game turned into a free throw shooting contest. Shomari Harris found herself at the line late with 13 seconds remaining on the clock. Harris hit one of two free throws but the Lions obtained the rebound on the miss, and the Aggies sent Krystal Pickron to the stripe with eight seconds left. Pickron nailed both of her free throws that iced the game for the Lions as they went on to win 62-56.
 
The Lions defense was strong yet again as the Aggies shot 36.2 percent from the floor, and 28.6 percent from the three-point line; well below their Lone Star Conference leading 36.8 percent shooting from downtown. The Lions outrebounded Cameron 40-37 and shot 68.8 percent from the field that was crucial in the game, especially in the second half. Artaejah Gay recorded her first double-double this season with a game high of 17 points and 11 rebounds. Princess Davis continued to play strong scoring12 points as miss consistency, Gabby Scott, added another familiar ten points. Dayla Threatt lead the way in scoring for the Aggies with 16 points in 35 minutes. DJ Vallier followed behind her with a strong game shooting 6-of-7 from the field ending the game with 12 points.  

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• Artaejah Gay, Princess Davis, and Gabby Scott combine for 39 points.
• The Lions took six charges in the victory against Cameron.
• The Aggies outscored the Lions 31-25 in the second and third quarter. However the Lions outscored Cameron 37-25 in the first and fourth quarter.
• The Aggies average 36.8 percent on the season from the three-point line. They shot 28.6 percent in the loss to the Lions.
• Brandi Leal who is a 44% shooter from three and averages ten points per game only made one field goal and shot 1-of-4 from the three-point line.
• Both teams finished with 18 turnovers but the Aggies had 10 of them in the first quarter alone.
• The Aggie bench outscored the Lions 25-17 and they also outscored the Lions 22-15 in points off of turnovers.
• Artaejah Gay notches her first double-double this season with 17 points and 11 rebounds.
• Gay tallied a new season high in scoring with 17 points, rebounding with 11 boards, and field goal percentage shooting 70% from the floor.
• Gabby Scott extends her streak to five games in double figures in scoring while Princess Davis extends her streak to three games.

Burton's Corner
When asked about:
…the biggest factor linked to the victory against Cameron.…
"The biggest factor was defense. We played in my opinion, our best defensive game of the year. They are a team that is hard to guard and we did a great job of containing them at their place. Another factor was that we stayed poised through their runs and in a hostile environment. Cameron is a tough place to play, but we stayed to our game plan and finished out the game strong.."

GAME INFORMATION
Score: A&M-Commerce 62, Cameron 56
Records: A&M-Commerce (8-6, 2-1 LSC), Cameron (8-6, 2-3 LSC)
Series: A&M-Commerce are 23-21 against Cameron
Location: Aggie Gym Lawton, Texas
Time of Game: 5:30 p.m.

What's Next
The Lions end their three-game road trip Thursday, January 14 when they visit Texas Woman's in Denton, Texas. Texas Woman's just had a remarkable 11-game winning streak snapped after falling 59-41 to top ranked West Texas A&M. This season the Pioneers are 8-3 at home and are 3-1 in the Lone Star Conference. Texas Woman's conference wins came against Tarleton State (72-62), Midwestern State (71-45), and a slight edge over Eastern New Mexico (59-54). The Pioneers average 66 points per game and has the second best scoring defense in the Lone Star Conference allowing only 56.8 points per game. Texas Woman's is the only team that leads the Lions in defensive rebounds grabbing 31.5 boards off of the glass, and also leads the conference with six blocks per game. Yet, the weak link for the Pioneers this season has been at the free throw line where they rank sixth out of the nine Lone Star Conference teams. Erin Maxwell is a presence in the painted area for the Pioneers as she leads the team in scoring with 12.7 points per game, rebounding, pulling down 8.9 boards per game, and also has 56 swats this season. It is also important to note that although the team struggles, Maxwell shoots 80 percent from the free throw line. Kanesha Saygo is next on the stat sheet as she adds 9.7 points per game and has 21 total steals this season.
The Lions are 35-40 all-time against the Pioneers and are 13-14 when playing in their gym. Fortunately, the Lions have been slowly turning those tables, winning four of the last six games and currently hold a three-game winning streak when playing at Kitty Magee Arena.