Coming home after a tough road loss to Oral Roberts, Texas State women’s basketball looks to face off agains The University of Texas of the Permian Basin on Saturday at Strahan Arena.
After outscoring Oral Roberts in the first quarter but falling behind for the rest of the game, Texas State lost to Oral Roberts in a tight 63-57 contest at Tulsa on Friday.
Despite the loss, sophomore forward Da’Nasia Hood had a breakout game, scoring 17 points and grabbing eight rebounds for her second straight game with double-digit stats. Sophomore guard Kennedy Taylor led the team with seven assists but struggled from the floor, and both Taylor and the Holle twins shot 1-for -12.
Texas State’s defense brought the ‘Cats to Oral Roberts’ level, and the teams switched leads eleven times and came within two points in the final quarter before ORU took it away.
Coming home to face the Permian Basin Falcons on Saturday might be just what the team needs to turn it around. The Falcons will be coming into Strahan winless, but Texas State shouldn’t take the team lightly. Players and fans should watch out for Holly Hemmeline, who averages 22 points per game through the two season openers and has the most field goal attempts for the Falcons.
Head coach Zenerae Antoine is ready for a home matchup and a chance to regroup after a tough loss, Antoine said.
“It is good to be home for our next contest.” Coach Zenarae Antoine said. “The game this past weekend at Oral Roberts was highly competitive and we have an opportunity this week to continue to work on ourselves before we play our next game,”
As the sole returning starter and de facto leader of the ‘Cats, Brooke Holle had a rusty start of the season, averaging 5.5 points and shooting 27% from the floor. For the Bobcats to contend going forward, Holle will need to find her groove or share the lead with other standouts.
For example, the Bobcats’ win over Texas Lutheran was accomplished on the shoulders of sophomore center Jaeda Reed, something that could help the team later on. Reed took 14 shots against TLU but only made half the amount over Oral Roberts, while sophomore Kennedy Taylor has also done well with running the offense but has suffered from rusty shooting to start the season.
Texas State faces off against Texas-Permian Basin at 11 a.m. on Saturday back at Strahan Arena.