Photo GalleryHOUSTON – Senior guard
Tayler Jefferson scored a season-high 25 points and tied her career high of five 3-pointers, but visiting Texas Southern forced HBU to commit 23 turnovers and defeated the Huskies, 92-80, Wednesday evening at Sharp Gym.
Jefferson shot 8-of-12 from the floor, 5-of-7 from beyond the arc, and a perfect 4-for-4 at the charity stripe to lead HBU (4-4).
Monet Neal and
Rachel Arthur scored 15 and 11 points, respectively.
Shanice Steenholdt earned her sixth double-double of the season as she had 10 points and a team-high 11 rebounds. HBU shot 54 percent from the floor.
Alexus Johnson scored 24 points on 9-of-17 shooting to lead Texas Southern (2-6). Morgan Simmons recorded a double-double of 17 points and a game-high 11 rebounds. Diamonisha Sophus almost had a double-double, as she finished with 17 points and nine assists. The Lady Tigers also shot 54 percent from the floor.
HBU led 5-2 following a steal and layup by Steenholdt, but Texas Southern tied the game on a Johnson three-pointer at the 17:08-mark.
A three-pointer by
Heidi Sihvola gave HBU a 10-9 lead with 15:11 remaining in the opening half before Texas Southern used a 13-0 run to take a 22-10 advantage with just under 12 minutes to go.
HBU cut the deficit to four, 22-18, following a layup by Steenholdt, but the Lady Tigers used another big run, this one being 12-0, to take a 30-18 lead with just under eight minutes remaining in the half.
The Huskies cut the deficit to single digits, coming as close as eight, 37-29, but the Lady Tigers would outscore HBU, 12-7, in the final 3:52 to take a 13-point lead into the locker room, 46-39. Sophus culminated the run with a three-pointer at the buzzer.
Jefferson led the Huskies with 11 first-half points, as she was perfect in the half: 4-for-4 from the floor and hitting all three long balls. The Huskies shot 63 percent from the floor, but converted 16 turnovers which resulted in 18 TSU points. Brianna Sidney led the Lady Tigers with 13 points, as TSU shot 54 percent from the floor.
HBU cut the deficit in single digits, 53-44, causing TSU to take a timeout at the 16:49-mark of the second half. The breather worked for the Lady Tigers, as they scored six-straight points to lead by 15, 59-44, with 15:53 remaining.
Texas Southern led by as many as 17 before HBU went on a furious run, outscoring TSU 17-4 to cut the deficit to four, 67-63, halfway into the second half. Jefferson hit back-to-back three pointers and forced a steal which resulted in two made free throws, all in a span of 1:27, during the run.
A three-pointer by Johnson gave the Lady Tigers a seven-point lead, as HBU could not get closer than six the rest of the way.
Jefferson had 14 second-half points, while
Ashleigh Nwanguma came off the bench to score seven. The Huskies shot 49 percent in the half. Johnson led Texas Southern with 13 points, as the Lady Tigers shot 53 percent.
HBU will look to rebound when it hosts McMurry Friday at 6 pm from Sharp Gym.