HOUSTON – After going scoreless in the first half, HBU sophomore guard
Lisa Zderadicka poured in 23 points in the second half as the Huskies rallied for 56-51 victory over Texas A&M-Corpus Christi in Southland Conference women's basketball Saturday afternoon at Sharp Gym.
Zderadicka hit 8-of-11 from the field, including 3-of-4 from 3-point range, and 4-of-5 from the free throw line for the Huskies (5-15, 3-7 SLC). Senior guard
Heidi Byrd added 10 points, hitting a pair of threes, while freshman guard
Shannon Jones scored nine points and grabbed a season-high nine rebounds. Sophomore center
Kennedy Collins and freshman forward
Taylor Kollmorgen each recorded seven rebounds.
Dalesia Booth led the Islanders (8-14, 4-7) with 18 points, while Ashanti Plummer scored 12 points and had a team-high seven rebounds. Brianna Jackson chipped in with eight points.
HBU shot 37.7 percent from the field, including 6-for-12 from long distance, and 10-for-17 from the free throw line. TAMU-CC shot 36.1 percent, but went 0-for-11 from deep, and 7-for-14 from the stripe. The Huskies outrebounded the Islanders, 42-34.
With the score tied, 10-10, in the first, TAMU-CC scored the final eight points of the period. Both teams got off to a sluggish start in the second, with the Huskies scoring the only two points over the first 4:30 minutes. The Islanders scored the first two field goals of the period to lead by 10, before freshman guard
Sydney Carr scored the Huskies' lone basket in the frame. TAMU-CC outscored HBU in the frame, 8-4, to lead 26-14 at the break.
The Huskies trailed, 32-20, with 6:04 left in the third, but a pair of Zderadicka free throws ignited a 15-0 run as HBU took its first lead of the game with 2:56 to go in the period. Zderadicka accouted for all 15 points during the spurt, scoring 12 points and assisting on a Byrd 3-pointer. Jackson knocked down a pair of jumpers to regain the lead for the Islanders, 36-35, heading into the fourth.
Byrd buried a triple, then made a steal and took it the distance to put the Huskies ahead by three, but the Islanders answered and took a one-point lead with 5:11 remaining. TAMU-CC still led by one with just over two minutes to go, but Zderadicka drilled back-to-back threes to put HBU ahead for good and Byrd put it away with a pair of free throws with 16 seconds on the clock.
HBU will be on the road next week as it faces Northwestern State Thursday in Natchitoches, Louisiana, followed by Sam Houston State Saturday in Huntsville.
