LUBBOCK, Texas – Junior guard
Rachel Arthur led three Huskies in double figures as HBU pushed Big 12 power Texas Tech to the limit, falling 60-59 to the Lady Raiders Tuesday evening from United Supermarkets Arena.
Arthur scored a team-high 16 points on 7-of-13 shooting for HBU (6-5). She went 1-of-2 from beyond the arc and 1-of-2 from the free throw line. Senior guard
Tayler Jefferson scored 13 points and had five rebounds and five assists. Senior forward
Shanice Steenholdt finished with 11 points and was tied for the game high of seven rebounds. The Huskies shot 40 percent from the floor in the game.
Amber Battle led Texas Tech (10-2) with 19 points on 8-of-16 shooting. She and Kelsi Baker each pulled down seven rebounds. The Lady Raiders shot 44 percent from the floor in the contest.
Texas Tech scored the game's first six points before HBU rattled off 10-straight points to take a 10-6 lead with 14:27 remaining in the opening half.
Following a Steenholdt steal and a fast-break layup by the senior forward, HBU took its largest lead of the game, 14-6, with 11:42 to go in the first half.
Texas Tech used a 16-7 run to take a 22-21 lead at the 7:10-mark. With the score tied at 22-all, the Lady Raiders closed the first half outscoring the Huskies, 10-8, to lead at the break, 32-29.
Steenholdt led all players with 11 first-half points, followed by Jefferson with seven. HBU shot 34 percent in the half. Battle and Amber Brooks each scored seven points for Texas Tech, as the Lady Raiders shot 41 percent in the half.
Texas Tech opened the second half with a 22-10 run to take its largest lead of the game, 54-39, with 10:17 to go in the game.
A three-pointer by Arthur stopped the bleeding and started a furious 11-2 Huskies run to trail by only three, 56-53, with 4:45 remaining in regulation.
Erin McGarrachan and
Anna Strickland each had key blocks during the run.
Trailing by three with 90 seconds remaining, Jefferson was fouled and made one of two free throws, making the deficit two, 58-56. The Lady Raiders' ensuing drive resulted in a key Battle jumper, giving the hosts a four-point lead. Jefferson responded with a three-pointer to cut the deficit to one, 60-59. Baker missed a layup, but got her own rebound and the Huskies had to foul. Minta Spears missed the front-end of a one-and-one.
Monet Neal grabbed the rebound, but Jamie Roe forced a turnover in the waning seconds, ending the Huskies' chance.
Arthur scored 11 second-half points for HBU, as the Huskies shot 48 percent in the half. Battle had 12 points for the Lady Raiders, as the team also shot 48 percent in the half.
HBU begins Southland Conference play Friday, Jan. 2 at 3 pm against Northwestern State, the reigning SLC tournament champions.
