Laila Walker recorded 12 points and 16 rebounds against Texas State, leading the ULM Warhawks to a 74-66 victory Saturday at Strahan Arena.
Three other players finished in double-digit scoring for ULM. Guard Jakayla Johnson led the Warhawks in scoring with 18 points, guard Ciante Downs finished with 13 points and forward Sakiya White scored 11.
For Texas State, forward Jaylin Foster made her presence felt all around the court. She recorded a team-high 22 points, six assists and four combined steals and blocks. Guard Ja’Mia Harris scored 15 points, grabbed five rebounds and recorded one block.
“What we needed to do a better job of is controlling defensively the looks [ULM] was getting. From an offensive standpoint, I felt there was a lot of really good things that we were able to do,” Texas State head coach Zenarae Antoine said. “We did not make a lot of shots early and we did a poor job at the free throw line early.”
ULM outscored Texas State by five or more points in every quarter except the third. In the third quarter, the Maroon and Gold outscored ULM 21-10 and even took the lead.
“We came out of halftime understanding that it took a really good job fighting back, it was 21-10 in that third quarter. Then going into the fourth, I really want to re-evaluate if we just fizzled out because I shortened the roster too,” Antoine said. “I was not rotating as many. Did we fizzle out or not make an immediate adjustment for some reason? Because [ULM] came out like thunder in that fourth quarter.”
“There are no silver linings in a loss, but there are always lessons learned,” Antoine said. “Defensively, there are things we are gonna have to work on for sure. Offensively, I do like some of the things we are able to do.”
The first quarter remained close with under a minute left to play. Johnson’s three-pointer for ULM with 40 seconds left was enough to give the Warhawks a five-point lead, 21-16, heading into the second quarter of play.
In the second quarter, ULM outscored Texas State 17-13. Downs, White, Walker and Brikayla Gray scored all of the Warhawks’ points in the second quarter. With 28 seconds left in the second, Texas State forward Nicole Leff converted on a layup, cutting the ULM lead from 11 points to nine before halftime.
The Bobcats outscored the Warhawks 21-10 in the third quarter. The quarter began with a 6-2 scoring run from Texas State, cutting the ULM lead to five points. Foster went on a solo 8-2 run for Texas State and took the lead with a three-pointer near the end of the third. Texas State led 50-48 entering the fourth and final quarter.
The ULM Warhawks opened the fourth quarter by taking the lead back, going on a 7-2 scoring run with four points coming from Walker. Another six-point run from ULM extended their lead to nine points with just under five minutes remaining in the game. Both teams traded scores until the final buzzer, but ultimately, ULM came out on top.
Texas State drops to 9-10 this season, while the ULM Warhawks improve to 8-11. The Bobcats hit the road for their next contest against Southern Miss (7-13) on Jan. 30 at 6:00 p.m. The game will be available to stream only on ESPN+.
