Texas Tech Athletics
Incarnate Word
Lady Raiders Corral Cardinals, 70-55
December 14, 2015 | Women's Basketball
Dec. 14, 2015
LUBBOCK, Texas -- Behind a 13-0 run in the second half, The Texas Tech Lady Raiders picked up their sixth home win in a row, downing Incarnate Word, 70-55, on Monday night, at United Supermarkets Arena.Texas Tech (7-2) struggled to find a rhythm for most of the game but used a 13-0 run spanning from the 1:59 mark of the third quarter (40-38 lead) to the 7:56 mark of the fourth (53-38 lead) to put the game away, which included an Ivonne CookTaylor buzzer-beating jumper to give Tech a 47-38 lead after three quarters.
🚨Buzzer Beater Alert🚨 CookTaylor caps a 7-0 run with a baseline jumper to give Tech a 47-38 lead after 3! #WreckEm pic.twitter.com/1mobjX4Kh1
-- Lady Raider WBB (@LadyRaiderWBB) December 15, 2015
CookTaylor led the way for the Lady Raiders with 20 points and nine rebounds. It marked the fourth time this season and the sixth time in her career to hit the 20-point mark.
"Obviously I want to win every game and I care if we win, but I also care how we play," Texas Tech head coach Candi Whitaker said. "[I care about] the energy we play with, the effort we play with, our execution and that we're playing and doing things the way we are taught. I definitely did not see that tonight."
Incarnate Word (3-6) hung around in part thanks to forcing 19 Lady Raider turnovers. The Cardinals also connected six times from long range.
For the second-straight game, Tech struggled to shoot early on. The Lady Raiders shot 3-16 (18.8%) in the first quarter, which was a season low, and led 13-11 after one stanza. Tech used a 9-3 spurt at the end of the second quarter to go into the half with a 33-24 lead.
From there, Incarnate Word put together a 7-0 run to climb within 40-38 late in the third quarter, but that is when Tech struck with the 13-0 run to slam the door. Tech was red hot in the second half, shooting at a 58.3% clip (14-24) from the field to finish the game at 48.1% (26-54).
Leashja Grant went 7-10 from the field and 4-4 from the line to give the Lady Raiders 18 points off the bench. It was her best performance since her 26-point debut vs. Niagara.
"I thought Leashja [Grant] did a good job, and I thought our team did a better job of finding her," Whitaker said. "Sometimes, that has been the problem--we haven't looked there. I'm proud of the way she finished. I thought she missed two in the first half by being just a little timid on the catch, but I thought she did a much better job of posting and playing in the second half. However, I'm still looking for her to be more impactful from a rebounding standpoint."
Rayven Brooks was also effective, registering 13 points on just six shots, to go along with five rebounds and five assists.
The Lady Raiders had one of their most complete games at the free throw line this season, going 15-19 (78.9%). Tech entered the night shooting 60.8% from the charity stripe.
The Lady Raiders won the battle on the glass, 44-29, and are now 7-0 when outrebounding opponents this season. Tech is now also 7-0 this year when holding opponents below the 70-point mark.
Brianna Williams provided the spark for Incarnate Word, hitting four three-pointers en route to 23 points.
The Lady Raiders will return to action Friday night against Grambling State, with tipoff at United Supermarkets Arena set for 6:30 p.m.
Visit www.TexasTech.com for the latest news and information on the women's basketball program. Fans also can follow the program on its social media outlets at www.Facebook.com/LadyRaiderWBB and @LadyRaiderWBB on Twitter.
