ODESSA– The Texas A&M University-Commerce women's basketball team got a come-from-behind 78-69 win over UT Permian Basin on Saturday. The Lions trailed by as many as nine but rallied in the fourth quarter to get the win.
 
The win brings the Lions to 20-8 on the season and 14-6 in the Lone Star Conference. It is the second 20-win season for the Lions in their history. The Lions finish fourth in the LSC. UTPB falls to 7-20 and 3-17 in conference play, finishing in 10th.
 
The Lions will return to action on Friday as they play in the quarterfinal round of the LSC postseason tournament. The Lions go in as the fourth seed and will face No. 5 Tarleton State. The game will begin at 6 p.m. at the Allen Events Center in Allen, Texas. Should the Lions advance, they would play again on Saturday with a potential Sunday matchup for the LSC Championship.
 
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- Artaejah Gay scored a career-high 31 points to lead all scorers. She shot 12-of-17 from the field and 4-of-5 from behind the arc. She moved into the top 10 in school history in field goals made. She scored 11 points in the fourth quarter.
- Krystal Pickron had 15 points, scoring 10 points from the free throw line. She also had five assists and seven rebounds.
- Khala Riley neared a double-double with nine points and 10 rebounds and she also co-led the Lions with five assists.
- Brianna Wise had nine points, seven rebounds, four assists and two blocks.
- The Lions scored 30 points in the paint and only gave up 10 points inside.
- A&M-Commerce also had 15 second-chance points on 18 offensive rebounds. The Lions outrebounded UTPB 51-26.
- Briana Caro and Niva Taito co-led the Falcons with 16 points. Heather Crittenden added 14 point for UTPB

 
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Lions had two layups to lead off the game and took a quick 4-0 lead. The Lions were able to score at will early inside the paint, scoring their first five baskets inside the lane. Midway through the first quarter the Lions led 11-5. Five different Lions got on the board early.
 
The Falcons went on a run of their own to close out the first quarter. The Lions hit a cold spell from the field, especially from behind the arc. Meanwhile UTPB caught fire from deep, hitting consecutive threes to tie the game at 11. Gay was the primary scorer for the Lions. She had a three and a layup late to get the Lions to 16 but UTPB matched them and the game was tied after the first quarter.
 
The Lions started the second quarter on a tear, scoring the first 13 points of the quarter. Gay and Riley both hit threes to open up the quarter. Gay had another layup and Wise hit a layup on an assist from Riley and Pickron hit a three of her own. The score was 29-16 with six minutes to go in the half.
 
The Lions hit another cold spell that UTPB took advantage of to end the quarter. After the teams traded baskets twice, UTPB finished the second half on a 10-1 run, holding the Lions scoreless for the final two minutes of the half. The Lions took a slim 36-35 lead into the second half.
 
Gay led all scorers with 16 points, shooting 7-of-10 from the field. Riley added five points, six rebounds and four assists. Caro and Crittenden each had 10 points for UTPB.
 
The Falcons continued their rally out of the break, scoring the first four points of the second half to take a lead. The Lions missed their first four shots before Riley got the Lions on the board in the second half. The Falcons brought their lead to seven points.
 
Pickron got to the free throw line in the Lions' three two possessions, hitting five of six to cut into the UTPB lead down to just two. However, the Lion shooting woes continued while UTPB continued its hot shooting from behind the arc. The Falcons hit another three and the Lions trailed by nine with three minutes to play in the third.
 
The Lions rallied late in the quarter. Jordan Williams had three points and Gay hit another layup. Pickron hit a layup with three seconds left in the quarter to send the Lions into the fourth quarter trailing 58-54.
 
Wise hit a three to start the scoring in the fourth quarter. The teams traded baskets for the first five minutes of the quarter. Jenna Price scored four points in the fourth and then Gay hit back-to-back shots. With 5:26 remaining, the Lions retook the lead.
 
They would never give it back. Gay hit a three to finish her own 7-0 run and after three Pickron free throws, Gay hit another three to finish a 12-0 run for A&M-Commerce. The Lions led pushed their lead to as many as 11 late in the quarter.