Box Score

ARLINGTON, Texas - Sophomore Kirsti Degelia poured in a game-high 17 points and pulled in nine rebounds to lead a dogged Midwestern State effort in a 67-56 exhibition win over NCAA Division I UTA Tuesday night at Texas Hall.
 
"These young ladies played so hard and we were so ready to play someone else," MSU coach Noel Johnson said. "We knew we were going to see some pressure, athleticism and big time rebounding, so we wanted to rebound, limit turnovers and relax. We followed that game plan exactly."
 
The Mustangs got off to a quick start pushing out to a 7-1 lead on freshman Shatoia Gober's jumper in the paint with 14:39 to play in the first half as the Movin' Mavs didn't score a field goal until Malaika Green hit a jumper over 5:30 minutes into the contest.
 
It was a lead Midwestern would never surrender hustling soon-to-be Western Athletic Conference UTA into 21 turnovers and out-rebounding the taller Mavs by a 42-39 margin.
 
"We consistently blocked out, but did have some problems with keeping them off the glass on second shots," Johnson said. "But to limit them to 40 rebounds, I'm pleased with that."
 
Senior forward Jazman Patterson led the effort on the glass with 10 rebounds to go along with five points and three steals, while freshman forward Andrea Carter added five points and six rebounds in 18 minutes off of the bench.
 
The Mustangs pushed the lead to a 7-point bulge at 14-7 when Carter hit the second of two free throws created by a steal in the back court with 10:01 to go in the opening half.
 
UTA chipped away with a 7-1 run to knot the game at 24-24 on Chauntandra Williams' jumper 1:31 before halftime, but Carter and sophomore Skyler Warrick each converted a pair of free throws in the final minute of the opening stanza to give MSU a 28-24 edge at the intermission.
 
The Mavs pulled within a point on three occasions in the early stages of the second, but the Mustangs answered with a 7-1 run fueled by a Karissa Lang 3-pointer, a layup by Patterson and a pair charity tosses by Carter push the lead to 39-31 with 12:42 to play.
 
UTA crept back to within 49-46 on a Sabreena Denure's jumper with 5:03 to play before Degelia put the game away for MSU.
 
The Krum native hit a pair free throws, buried a 3-ball and put back her own miss of a trey from the corner as part of a personal 7-0 run to push the lead to 56-47 with 3 minutes to play.
 
The outburst accounted for two of her three field goals for the game, but Degelia made her impact at the charity stripe where she hit 10-of-11 tosses. She also added four steals in 34 minutes.
 
"She hit a 3 at the right time and that's the closer you want," Johnson said. "Kirsti had her day on the free throw line. She picked and choose when she wanted to drive. I tell her to never turn down a shot."
 
Senior guard Savannah Carver chipped in 10 of her 13 points in the second half including an 8-for-10 performance from the charity stripe, while senior Cierra Thompson added 10 points on 3-of-8 shooting.
 
Denure paced UTA with 11 points, while Bianca Sauls had six points and 13 rebounds.
 
Midwestern State opens the regular season Saturday night against Texas A&M International at D.L. Ligon Coliseum. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m.