COMMERCE– The Texas A&M University-Commerce women's basketball team got a dominating 85-67 win over Eastern New Mexico on Saturday. The Lions took control of the game in the third quarter and ran away from the conference-leading Greyhounds.
 
The win brings the Lions to 16-6 on the season and 10-4 in the Lone Star Conference. It is the first time the Lions have had double-digit conference wins since the 2006-07 season. ENMU falls to 16-5 and 12-2 in conference play.
 
The Lions return to action on Thursday as they host Angelo State University. The game will start at 5:30 p.m. at the Field House.
 
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- The win brings the Lions to 10-4 in conference play. That is their highest conference win total since the 2006-07 season.
- Brianna Wise led the Lions with a career-high 22 points. She shot 6-of-10 from the field and was a perfect 7-of-7 from the foul line. She also had six rebounds.
- Artaejah Gay had 19 points and pulled down four boards.
- Khala Riley scored 14 points and had a game-high seven assists.
- Krystal Pickron had 11 points and eight rebounds.
- The Lions got to the free throw line 37 times in the game and converted 87 percent of their free throws.
- A&M-Commerce outscored ENMU 22-7 in the third quarter.
- Kassandra Harris scored 18 points to lead ENMU. Sarina Johnson had 12 points and Jasmine Hotchkins added 11 for the Greyhounds.
- The Greyhounds were held to just 23 percent from the field in the second half.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Lions fell behind early with two quick turnovers to the Greyhounds. Wise hit two free throws to start the scoring for the Lions but back-to-back threes from ENMU put the Greyhounds up by seven after the first two and a half minutes.
 
The Lions found their groove after that, going on a 15-0 run to take the lead. Riley got to the line for two and then found Wise on the next possession for a three. Gay had two consecutive buckets and the Lions took an eight-point lead with three minutes to play in the quarter. Brittany Adams came into the game midway through the quarter and got to the foul line six times, converting five as part of the run.
 
The Greyhounds began a run of their own late in the quarter to close the gap. The Lions took a 25-22 lead into the second quarter.
 
The second quarter started as a heavyweight bout with both teams striking with baskets as well as defensive plays. The teams went back and forth for the first five and a half minutes of the quarter, with multiple lead changes and ties. Midway through the quarter, the game was tied at 35.
 
The Greyhounds started to pull away midway through the quarter, going on a 7-0 surge. The Lions answered right back to cut the lead down to two with three minutes to go. Gay hit a jumper and Wise hit another three.
 
Both teams struggled from the field to end the half. The Lions were held without a basket for the final three minutes and the Greyhounds were forced to score from the foul line, getting two late trips to the charity stripe. A&M-Commerce went into halftime down 46-42. 
 
Wise led the Lions with 11 points in the first half, shooting 3-of-4 from behind the arc. Riley added 10 points and five assists, making all four of her free throws. Gay had eight points to aid the Lions. Harris had 13 points in the first half for ENMU.
 
The Lions went on a tear to start the third quarter. They held the Greyhounds scoreless for the first six and a half minutes of the half. Meanwhile the Lions scored 11 points during that span. Riley hit two free throws and a jumper as part of the run. The Lions led by seven with three minutes to play in the third quarter.
 
After ENMU broke its scoring drought, Pickron hit four consecutive free throws and Wise converted a three-point play to put the Lions up double-digits. Wise scored the final five points of the third quarter as the Lions took a 64-53 lead into the final period.
 
The Lions continued to pour it on, scoring eight of the first 10 points of the fourth quarter. The Greyhounds scored five unanswered to cut the lead down to 12 but the Lions answered back with a 9-0 run to bring their lead to 21, the largest of the game.