EL PASO, Tex. – The Western Michigan women's basketball team closed out the UTEP Thanksgiving Classic in El Paso with a 79-76 victory over New Mexico State University on Saturday, Nov. 30 at the Don Haskins Center.
The win moves the Broncos' non-conference record to 3-3 overall.
Two Broncos scored in double-digit figures, with
Jordan Walker leading the pack with a season-high 26 points.
Leighah-Amori Wool followed with a season-high 22 points along with team-high 15 rebounds, good for her second double-double of the season.
Jillian Fletcher and
Sydney Shafer added a combined 11 points off the bench.
Eight of the ten Broncos that saw playing time in tonight's contest contributed in the scoring column. Western Michigan shot 45 percent (27-for-60) from the field, converting 23 points off Aggie turnovers and scoring 28 points in the paint. WMU also shot 29.6 percent from beyond the arc with 8 three-pointers – three shy of a season-high.
The Broncos jumped out to an 18-7 lead to the open the game, the early advantage guided by 5-for-11 shooting from beyond the arc, capped off by nine points off threes from
Jordan Walker. Within just five minutes of play the Broncos were able to score more points than they had in the entire first half of the previous contest against UTEP. Western Michigan closed out the quarter with a 10-0 run guided by Walker and Shafer to give WMU a 31-16 lead heading into the second quarter.
The Broncos started the second frame with their sixth three-point field goal of the game as Fletcher scored off the bench to give WMU a 34-19 advantage, its largest lead of the half. The Aggies responded, creeping up on Western's lead while outscoring the Broncos 22-17 in the second quarter.
WMU maintained its lead throughout the first half, taking a 48-38 advantage into the intermission. The Brown & Gold shot 8-for-18 from beyond the arc, shooting a game-high 63.6 percent from the field in the second quarter.
New Mexico State pushed back in the third quarter, opening with a 6-0 scoring run and coming within four points to force a WMU timeout. Wool ended the run with a layup followed by a pair of made free throws from Walker. The Broncos struggled with shooting this quarter, converting a game-low two field goals while the Aggies went 7-for-11 to bring the score to 59-58 heading into the final stanza.
The fourth quarter saw the Aggies tip the scales with their first lead of the game, pushing the score to 60-59. A handful of free throw baskets tied the game at 64-64 with 6:31 left in regulation. Fletcher snatched away the ball on a New Mexico turnover, leading to a fast break layup from
Kamrin Reed to give the Broncos a four-point advantage.
WMU began to pull away with the lead after another steal and a jumper by Fletcher to force an NMSU timeout. The tight quarter ended in the Bronco's favor thanks to 68 percent shooting from the line and five points each points Wool and Walker to seal the win, 79-76.
Up next, the Broncos continue their road game stretch with a game against the University of Illinois-Chicago on Sunday, Dec. 8. Their next home game is on Dec. 14 against Chicago State University with a 2 p.m. tipoff.
