DENTON, Texas -- Midwestern State clinched their fourth Lone Star Conference victory with an 83-76 score over Texas Woman's on Thursday night.
Frances King and
Morgan Lenahan combined for 39 points while
Shawnisay Millar rounded out with 12. MSU moves to 9-6 on the season and 4-2 in Lone Star Conference play.
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TWU's Ashley Ingram collected the first four points for the team while MSU stayed close, posting six points on the home side's three turnovers.
Frances King grabbed an early six points to push the Mustangs to 13 total. Ingram kept the Pioneers even with eight tallies.
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MSU took a 23-17 lead after swishing five of seven from the field with 1:30 left in the first period.
Sheridan Bostic added six points, hitting both three-point attempts.
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TWU took a one-point advantage on a 7-0 run in the final minute of the first quarter. Kayla Grover drove into the lane to finish the go-ahead layup in the dying seconds of the period. MSU shot 45 percent from the floor and 60 percent from beyond the arc. Texas Woman's was 50 percent from the field and from range while knocking down all three free-throw attempts.
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 Ma'K'La Woods and King traded steals with six minutes to play in the second. The Pioneers held MSU without a score for two and a half minutes until
Jordan Mathis clinched her second field goal of the match. Woods contributed 14 points to her team, hitting seven of 11 from the field.
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TWU continued to give the ball away to the Mustangs as they went three straight minutes with four turnovers. Their 11 total gave MSU 15 points. The visitors' main folly was foul trouble, sending Texas Woman's to the free-throw line eight times to hold a 33-29 lead with three minutes to play.
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Midwestern State turned in four of five from the field to take a 38-37 lead with 35 seconds remaining in the first half. Sadie Moyer turned in a pair of free throws to fuel a 10-point performance in the first half and push TWU ahead by one point.
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Morgan Lenahan's inbound bucket took the Mustangs into halftime with the 40-39 advantage. For the second quarter of play, MSU shot 47 percent from the field and only 20 percent from range. Texas Woman's decreased to 45 percent shooting from the floor and 71 percent from the line. The two teams traded the lead six times throughout the first 20 minutes.
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TWU opened the second half with a quick four points, which Midwestern State responded with a three-pointer from Lenahan. Both teams then entered a two-minute scoring drought with six and a half minutes in the quarter.
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Hannah Reynolds pushed the Mustangs' 6-0 run and helped Texas Woman's maintain their scoreless streak over three minutes. Reynolds recorded nine points, going three of three from the line. She added two blocks and six boards.
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The Mustangs began to struggle, not finding a field goal for over three minutes straight.
Eternity Jackson secured her first assist as she poured into Mathis to end the streak. The forward registered six points on the night, going three of four from the field.
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 The Pioneers pushed their lead to 56-53 on two Moyer steals and shooting four of five straight. The guard posted 19 tallies and four steals before leaving the match with an injury.
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 After dropping the final four shots of the quarter, TWU led MSU 59-57. Midwestern State was six of 15 from the floor and four of five from the line. Texas Woman's also saw 40 percent shooting from the field, but knocked down all three free-throw attempts.
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Shawnisay Millar drained two shots from the line to turn the game tied at 59 at the start of the final quarter. The forward
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With six minutes to play, Lenahan clinched her 18th point of the match to give MSU the 66-63 lead and a 7-0 run over two minutes. The Pioneers were scoreless over two minutes and were 0-of-4 from the field. Lenahan secured 18 points, going eight of 23 attempts. The guard added six boards for the Mustangs.
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Millar continued the run with a free throw and a three-pointer to push the game to a 70-66 score with the Mustangs in the lead. The junior poured in 12 points, hitting four from the floor.
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With less than two to play in the fourth quarter, Ingram clinched her 24th points of the game, going nine of ten from the charity stripe. The freshman grabbed the double-double performance with 30 points and 13 rebounds, going nine of 17 from the floor.
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The home side continued to trail by six after
Markayla Johnson poured in a layup. The sophomore recorded seven points and seven rebounds on the night.
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King sealed the deal with a steal and layup in the final minute of play. The guard registered 21 points, going six of ten from the field. She added a career-high seven steals and season-high six rebounds to the night.
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The Mustangs concluded the game on a four of five run from the field. The team upped their shooting to 58 percent from the field and 71 percent from the line.
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Texas Woman's finished only two of their final ten field goals. The Pioneers were held to 31 percent shooting from the field and 77 percent from the line. Ariyanna Hines added six points for TWU while Keslyn King posted five.
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Midwestern State returns to Lone Star Conference play on Sunday, Jan. 23. The Mustangs face No. 4 Texas A&M-Commerce in Commerce, Texas, for their seventh conference match of the season. The Field House hosts the LSC foes with tip-off set for 2 p.m.
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--MSUMustangs.com--