Buzzer-beater bests Hounds

PORTALES – For much of the game, it looked like it might be the first team to 50 would win.

Turns out, that's exactly what it was.

Texas A&M-Kingsville played for a final shot and junior guard Mia Rivers drove the lane for a layup with two seconds left, giving the Javelinas a 50-48 Lone Star Conference women's victory over Eastern New Mexico University on Saturday afternoon at Greyhound Arena.

It was only the second make in 10 attempts for Rivers, who was hardly the only one in the game to struggle in that area. Still, it was enough to get the job done for Kingsville (10-8, 7-5 LSC).

After a timeout, freshman KiKi Roberts' desperation heave from just inside midcourt was off the mark.

"When you play on the road, you obviously have to match the intensity of the home team," said A&M-Kingsville coach Michael Madrid, a Portales native and a graduate of both Portales High and ENMU. "We were able to make a couple of plays down at the end (of the game)."

ENMU (8-9, 5-7) took a 44-41 lead after three quarters on freshman Corin Camara's 3-point bank shot at the buzzer. But while they held Kingsville to nine points in the final stanza, the Greyhounds managed only four of their own.

That included a stickback basket by senior forward Edecia Beck with 27 seconds left to tie it.

"When you hold a team to 50 points, that's a good thing," ENMU women's coach Meghan De los Reyes said. "I'm pleased with our effort on the defensive end. I think we got stagnant (on offense) in the fourth quarter. We didn't run our offense with any pace."

ENMU led by five points late in the first half, and opened a six-point cushion on a Camara 3-ball with 6 ½ minutes left in the third stanza. But scoring was a big-time struggle after that.

Sophomore forward Veyda Lake scored 12 points and sophomore guard Jayde Tschritter added 10 for the Javelinas, whose roster includes six sophomores and two freshmen.

"It was a slugfest," Madrid said. "I thought defensively, for the most part, we played well. If you want to play in March, this is the way most games are going to be played."

ENMU, playing without junior forward/guard Deja Adrian (knee) for a second consecutive game, got 12 points, six rebounds and six assists from sophomore guard Bella Stone, while Beck notched 10 points. But the Hounds finished just under 30 percent from the field (18-of-61).

ENMU dominated the boards 46-33, led by a season-best 13 – eight offensive – from senior forward Laz Saunders and 11 from Beck, who notched her second double-double of the campaign.

"Kingsville is a really tough opponent," De los Reyes said. "When you play with that type of defensive effort, you normally come out with a win."

ENMU faces road tilts this week at Angelo State on Thursday and at Texas-Permian Basin on Saturday.