COMMERCE – The Texas A&M University-Commerce women's basketball team won its home opener 87-69 over LeTourneau University on Wednesday night. The Lions led for the entire game in a contest that quickly got away from the Yellowjackets.
 
The win brings the Lions to 2-1 on the season. LETU drops to 0-1 on the season.
 
The Lions continue their two-game home stand as they face St. Edward's University on Sunday afternoon. The game will begin at 4 p.m. at the Field House.
 
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE 
- The Lions never trailed in the game, holding the lead for all but the first 44 seconds. Their largest lead was 23, which came in the final minute of the game. They outscored LETU in every quarter.
- Krystal Pickron, Jenna Price and Victoria George each had 12 points to lead the Lions. Six Lions scored in double figures as Princess Davis, Artaejah Gay and Brianna Wise all added 10 points each.
- Khala Riley led the Lions with 10 rebounds and had six assists and three steals. Gay had three blocks and Jordan Williams added 5 assists.
- A&M-Commerce shot 47 percent from the field and 87 percent from the free throw line. LETU shot 44 percent from beyond the arc.
- Crystal Jones led all scorers with 19 points, 17 of which came in the first half. LaTanya Drakes had 12 points and 13 rebounds for LETU, including nine offensive rebounds.
- The Lions outscored LETU 52-28 in the paint and 22-14 off of turnovers. They had season-high 39 points off the bench.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED 
The Lions were quick to get on the scoreboard. They scored eight of the first ten points of the game. They came out of the gates running, scoring inside the paint on fast breaks.
 
After giving up their first bucket, the Lions went on a 10-0 run in the first three minutes of the game. They led 21-4 after the first six minutes of play.
 
A&M-Commerce played swarming defense early on, closing the passing lanes. Their defensive pressure caused problems for the Yellowjackets as they started cold from the field. They shot just 6-22 in the first quarter, with the majority of those shots coming in the final minutes.
 
George scored five consecutive points for the Lions in the early goings and Gay had eight early points.
 
The Yellowjackets began to see a few of their shots fall in the latter parts of the first quarter. They banked in two 3-pointers to get back into the game, cutting the lead to 13.
 
The Lions closed out the quarter strong, as the Lions passing game was on point. They found multiple cutters for easy baskets. They had eight assists on their 12 field goals in the first quarter and led 28-15 after one.
 
The Yellowjackets began to clamp down on defense to start the second quarter. They cut the Lion lead to single digits midway through the quarter.
 
The Lions responded to push their lead back up. Price hit two 3-pointers in a row to push the Lion lead back to double-digits.
 
Jones kept LETU close, finding space in the Lion defense and making difficult shots in the lane. She also made her shots down the stretch, keeping the game close. The Lions took a 46-31 lead into halftime.
 
Jones led all scorers with 17 points at halftime, shooting 7-13 from the field, including 3-4 from behind the arc.
 
Wise had 10 points to lead the Lions at halftime. She also had five rebounds. Price had eight points, making all three of her shots. Gay added eight points and Riley had a game-high eight rebounds at the break.
 
The teams traded buckets for the majority of the third quarter. Every time LETU made a run, the Lions answered back to keep their lead near 15. Drakes was a force to be reckoned with on the offensive glass, totaling eight offensive rebounds in the first three quarters.
 
The Lions closed the quarter with swarming defense. They caused two consecutive LETU turnovers and took a 63-47 lead into the final quarter.
 
Price was everywhere at the end of the game for the Lions. She was strong on the boards and hustled to the ball, unafraid of contact. She also led the Lion pressure on the defensive end, causing two steals and getting to the free throw line on two separate occasions while playing strong inside the paint.
 
The Lions pushed their lead back over 20 points and built it to a game-high 23 with a minute left in the game. The Lions won 87-69.