Box Score

EDINBURG – In a game featuring the teams with the two best records in the Western Athletic Conference, the University of Texas-Pan American Broncs women's basketball team fell to the New Mexico State University Aggies 74-71 on Saturday at the UTPA Fieldhouse.
 
Senior Brittany Bush led the Broncs (11-10, 4-2 WAC) with her first double-double of the season and seventh of her career, scoring a career-high tying 18 points with a season-high 14 rebounds and two blocks. Freshman Hildur Björg Kjartansdóttir scored a career-high tying 16 points on 6-of-11 shooting, including 3-of-6 from behind the arc, with seven rebounds. Sophomore Shawnte' Goff scored 13 points with five rebounds.
 
Brianna Freeman led the Aggies (13-6, 6-0 WAC) with 25 points on 9-of-14 shooting, plus 7-of-8 from the line, to go with 15 rebounds and two steals. Sasha Weber scored 17 points. Moriah Mack finished with 14 points, five rebounds, four assists and two steals. The Aggies are now winners of nine in a row and 13 of 14.
 
The Aggies led by six on multiple occasions in the opening 10 minutes, including 20-14 on a pair of Freeman free throws with 12:03 remaining. The Broncs followed with a 7-0 run to take their first lead on a three by senior Tonisha Walker, but the Aggies scored the next eight points to take their largest lead of the half at 28-21 on a pair of Tamera William free throws.
 
The Broncs still trailed by seven after a Freeman layup at the 3:08 mark, but scored the next seven points to tie the game at 32-32 on a pair of free throws by junior Rickell Preston with 52 seconds left.
 
Zaire Williams ended the half with a three and Weber followed suit to start the first half as the Aggies went on an 18-8 run to build their largest lead of the game at 50-40.
 
The Broncs were still down 10 at 55-45 when Bush made a layup and then converted a three-point play to power a 10-3 run to make it a 58-55 game with 10:52 remaining.
 
The Broncs pulled within 68-67 after a pair of Preston free throws with 3:55 to go and 72-71 on a pair of Goff free throws with 1:12 left, but that's as close as they got.
 
The Broncs are back in action on Thursday at 7 p.m. when they host Kansas City at the UTPA Fieldhouse. Doors open at 6.

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