THE RUNDOWN
WICHITA FALLS – Midwestern State was unable to overcome a 29-point second quarter despite outscoring 25^th-ranked West Texas A&M in the second half Saturday afternoon at D.L. Ligon Coliseum as the Lady Buffs held on for a 78-67 decision.
 
West Texas A&M built a 49-30 advantage at the half, dominating the battle inside. The Mustangs were outrebounded 23-11 in the opening 20 minutes and gave up 20 points in the paint, including being outscored inside 10-4 in the first quarter.
 
Miscues haunted MSU as well in the first half. The Mustangs committed 11 turnovers that the Lady Buffs turned into 14 points.
 
Junior forward Chelsea Adams and senior guard Jasmine Richardson scored eight and seven points in the second half, respectively, going a combined 13-of-14 from the free throw line. MSU shot 23 second half free throws, going 82.6 percent from the charity stripe, allowing the Mustangs to close the gap.
 
Trailing 68-48 with 7:32 to play, the Maroon and Gold mounted a 16-5 run over the next five and a half minutes to pull within eight. Over that stretch, MSU went 7-for-7 from the free throw line and finished a perfect 11-for-11 in the quarter. Richardson scored eight points during the run and sophomore guard Mica Schneider tallied five.
 
MSU couldn't close the gap any further as WT went 5-for-6 from the free throw line in the final 1:25 to prevent the comeback from the Mustangs.
 
Senior forward Micheline Mercelita posted her second-straight double-double and seventh of the season, leading the Mustangs with 16 points and 13 rebounds, including nine boards in the second half. Adams finished with 12 points and Richardson added 11.
 
WT's Lexy Hightower led the Lady Buffs with 27, going 5-for-8 from distance.

NOTES
- Midwestern State dropped to 12-10 overall and 9-7 in Lone Star Conference play after a 78-67 loss to 25^th-ranked West Texas A&M. The Mustangs fall to 9-4 at D.L. Ligon Coliseum on the 2017-18 season.
- The Mustangs fell to 0-3 against opponents ranked in the WBCA top 25. MSU lost to third-ranked Lubbock Christian (65-57), then second-ranked West Texas A&M (64-46) and now 25^th-ranked WT (78-67).
- MSU went just 2-for-11 from beyond the arc, good for 18.2 percent.
- The Mustangs shot above 80 percent from the charity stripe for the third-time this season, going 29-of-36 from the free throw line.
- West Texas A&M won the battle inside, outrebounding the Mustangs 33-29, and outscored MSU 28-24 in the paint.
- Despite giving up 10 points off turnovers in the first quarter, MSU only allowed nine over the final 30 minutes.
- Senior forward Micheline Mercelita tallied her seventh double-double of the season, finishing with 16 points and 13 rebounds.
- Junior forward Chelsea Adams went for 12 points, the fourth-time the Dallas product has eclipsed double-figures, making a season-high eight free throws. The junior put up nine of her 12 points in the second half.
- Senior guard Jasmine Richardson added 11 points, the fifth-time this season the Corpus Christi native scored in double figures.

UP NEXT
Midwestern State is back in action on Thursday, Feb. 15 against Eastern New Mexico in Portales. Tipoff is set for 6:30 p.m.