ENMU women drop shootout with Cameron

LAWTON, Okla. — Eastern New Mexico University’s women got off to a fast start and kept it up for much of the game, but Cameron was able to pull out a down-to-the-wire 88-85 win over the Greyhounds on Tuesday night in the opening round of the Lone Star Conference women’s basketball tournament.

The victory advanced the sixth-seeded Aggies (17-10) to a quarterfinal match on Friday against third-seeded Texas A&M-Commerce (24-3) at Frisco, Texas.

“It was everything you expect a Lone Star Conference game to be,” first-year ENMU coach Meghan De los Reyes said. “We didn’t end up with the result we wanted, but I think we played our best game of the year.”

Junior guard Maighan Hedge led five Aggies in double digits with 22 points, while sophomore guard/forward Stephanie Peterson added 17 and junior forward Whitney Olton and freshman guard Katie King 14 apiece. Meantime, freshman guard/forward Kassie Boorer tallied 10 points off the bench.

King also finished with eight rebounds and six assists.

Four players reached double figures for the Hounds (10-14), seeded 11th in the 12-team field. Senior post MeMe Amand led the way with a season-best 23 points and a game-high 12 rebounds, tying her personal best, while senior guard Iyanna McCurdy scored 20 points, sophomore guard Natalie Stice 17 and freshman guard Bella Stone a season-best 16.

“MeMe had her best game of the year,” De los Reyes said. “She showed what she’s capable of.”

It was ENMU’s second-highest point total of the season, topped only by an 86-76 win over Oklahoma Christian on Feb. 7 at Greyhound Arena.

Both teams relied heavily on their starters, with four on each side playing at least 36 minutes and three (Stone, Hedge and King) going all 40.

“Bella came out real aggressive early,” De los Reyes said. “She’s always been the one to push the pace, and that kind of set the tone for us.”

In the end, the Hounds, who lost a 73-72 decision at Cameron in early February, couldn’t get enough stops. The Aggies shot 53 percent from the field (31-of-58), including 58 percent over the final three stanzas, and connected on 12-of-28 3-point tries.

“Cameron shot the lights out, and it wasn’t just one player,” De los Reyes said. “They were hard to control, but I was happy with the way we played all night.”

ENMU got off to a quick start, posting a pair of 8-0 runs in the opening segment and leading 22-12 late in the period. It was 26-18 after one.

Cameron pulled even 33-33 midway through the second with a 9-2 surge, and led 41-40 at halftime. The Aggies then built a 10-point lead early in the third frame, but the Hounds started the final quarter with a 10-1 blitz, fueled by three layups from Amand, for a 70-67 advantage.

Down 84-80 with a minute left, Stice’s 3 made it 86-85 with 30 seconds to go. Hedge added a pair of foul shots with 16 ticks left, and a Stice 3 in the closing seconds was off the mark.

Now it’s back to hitting the recruiting trail for De los Reyes and her staff.

“This league is really tough, but I’m so excited for what the future holds,” she said. “This year went by in a flash.”

Pullian among Hounds honored — ENMU men’s guard Kentrell Pullian was named to the LSC’s all-freshman team and earned freshman of the year honors in all-conference selections announced on Wednesday by league officials.

Pullian, from Benton Harbor, Mich., led the Hounds (7-17, 3-11 LSC) in scoring (12.0 ppg), rebounding (5.2 ppg) and assists (3.3 apg). He is the first ENMU men’s player to receive freshman of the year honors since Joshua Jackson won it in the then-LSC South Division in 2006.

On the women’s side, McCurdy earned a second-team all-conference berth, while Stice was selected for honorable mention.

McCurdy, from Philadelphia, posted eight double-doubles for the year and led the Hounds in scoring (14.0 ppg), good for ninth in the LSC, and rebounding (7.6 rpg), placing her eighth in the conference.

Stice, from Tahoka, Texas, averaged 13.3 ppg, 12th in the league, and led the team with 44 3-pointers, 44 assists and 39 steals.