Box Score (PDF)

THE RUNDOWN
DENTON, Texas – In a back-and-fourth affair in the fourth quarter, Jasmine Richardson's layup with 2.6 seconds to play lifted Midwestern State to a thrilling 66-65 road victory over Texas Woman's Thursday evening at Kitty Magee Arena.
 
After Bri'anna Gray gave Texas Woman's (11-6, 4-5 LSC) a 65-64 advantage with 9.8 seconds remaining, the Mustangs answered out of the timeout with Richardson finishing strong at the basket with a drive from the top of the key to propel MSU to the win.
 
A three-point play for Liz Cathcart followed by two free throws from Whitney Taylor propelled Midwestern State (5-11, 2-8 LSC) to a 52-51 lead with 6:06 remaining. It was a back-and-forth battle down the stretch with six lead changes before the Mustangs recorded the win.
 
The Mustangs made their first three baskets of the game, building an 8-2 lead in the first 1:44 of the contest following a three-pointer from Kristin Rydell. Texas Woman's responded with a run of its own with a three from Cienna Rodriguez evening the game at 10-all with 5:58 remaining.
 
The Mustangs built a 19-12 advantage over the next three minutes with Taylor contributing four points during the MSU run with less than three minutes to play in the quarter. However, the Pioneers closed out the period on a 10-0 run with five points coming from Kara Mitchell to give TWU a 22-19 advantage after one.
 
Kenesha Saygo scored five-straight points to help the Pioneers erase a one-point deficit in the second for a 27-23 score with 6:37 to play in the half. The Mustangs pulled even at 29 apiece after back-to-back triples for Rydell and Richardson with just over four minutes to play. The Mustangs were held without a field goal the final four minutes of the half with TWU taking a 35-31 lead at the break.

Saygo and Emily Spector helped lead TWU to its largest lead of the game at 42-35 before a Rydell three and jumper for Richardson brought MSU back within two with 3:25 to play in the third. The Pioneers stretched their lead back out to six after a pair of free throws from Morgan Easley before Rydell and Richardson spurred another MSU comeback to pull within two heading to the fourth.

NOTES
- Kristin Rydell led Midwestern State in scoring for the sixth time this season with her sixth double-digit scoring performance with 14 points on 5-of-11 shooting including 4-of-6 from behind the arc
- Liz Cathcart recorded a career-high 14 points on 5-of-8 shooting from the floor, scoring 10 of her points in the fourth quarter alone
- Jasmine Richardson reached double figures for the third-straight game with 12 points on 5-of-8 from the field
- Whitney Taylor notched double figures for the eighth consecutive game with 11 points
- Midwestern State placed four players in double digits for the fifth time this season (Adams State, UT Permian Basin, Eastern New Mexico, Cameron) and for the third-straight game
- Jennifer Arbuckle led MSU with six rebounds while adding six points to her stat line
- Leanna James dished out a team-high six assists, her sixth game this season with six or more assists
- The Mustangs shot 45.1 percent from the floor compared to TWU's 42.6 percent
- MSU shot 6-of-16 (37.5%) from long range and 14-of-18 (77.8%) from the free-throw line while the Pioneers were just 5-of-18 (27.8%) from three and 14-of-29 (48.3%) from the charity stripe
- TWU outrebounded the Mustangs 42-29 but were only able to net six second chance points off 17 offensive boards

STAT OF THE GAME
15 – Texas Woman's missed 15 free throws Thursday, shooting just 14-of-29 for 48.3 percent from the line

UP NEXT 
Midwestern State returns to D.L. Ligon Coliseum next weekend for a pair of Lone Star Conference matchups with Texas A&M-Commerce and Tarleton State. The Mustangs square off against Texas A&M-Commerce in a 5:30 p.m. tipoff Thursday before taking on rival Tarleton State in a 2 p.m. contest Saturday.