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RIO GRANDE VALLEY – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Vaqueros women's basketball team dropped its opening game of the season 71-44 to Texas Southern University on Thursday at the UTRGV Fieldhouse.
 
Graduate student Jordan Agustus led UTRGV (0-1) with 12 points and nine rebounds while freshman Halie Jones added eight points and nine rebounds in her first-career game. 
 
Ciani Cryor led all scorers with 26 points, seven assists and five steals. Niya Mitchell added a double-double with 17 points and a game-high 14 rebounds while Ataiya Bridges chipped in 12 points.
 
After Mitchell got the scoring started with a layup, senior Megan Johnson knocked down a three-pointer giving UTRGV the 3-2 lead. It would be the last lead of the game for UTRGV as Texas Southern went on a 7-0 run to take the 9-3 lead. A couple of baskets from Agustus and a pair of free throws from Jones tied the game at 9-9 but Texas Southern closed out the quarter with an 8-2 run to take the 17-11 lead into the second quarter. 
 
Texas Southern outscored UTRGV 18-6 in the second quarter to take the 35-17 lead into halftime. 
 
In the second half, Johnson opened the scoring with a layup before Texas Southern pushed its lead 40-21 with a three-pointer by Cryor. Later in the quarter, redshirt junior Amara Graham knocked down a three-pointer to make it 42-28 but Texas Southern closed out the quarter with a 60-34 lead. 
 
UTRGV played Texas Southern tight in the fourth quarter but Texas Southern kept UTRGV at bay the rest of the way. 
 
UTRGV will be back in action Saturday when it hosts Minot State at 3 p.m. at the UTRGV Fieldhouse. Current UTRGV students get free admission with a valid UTRGV student ID. Tickets are on sale now and can be purchased online at UTRGVTickets.com. Fans purchasing their tickets online prior to game day can save up to $2 per ticket. Doors open at 2.

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