SAN ANTONIO – The No. 22/24 Angelo State women's basketball team defeated Division I UT-San Antonio 85-77 on the road Friday night in San Antonio.
The Belles were able to outrebound UTSA (0-1) 48-42 on the boards including 20 on the offensive end. The rebounding advantage turned into 26 second chance points and ASU dominated in the paint with 40 points compared to just 26 for UTSA. The bench also was key, contributing 25 points for ASU. The Belles also had an edge on the free throw line sinking 71.4-percent while UTSA only made 55.2-percent.
"We have a lot of respect for UTSA," Angelo State head women's basketball coach Kevin Baker said. "I really appreciated the opportunity to showcase our program tonight. I thought we executed our offense extremely well in the second half. I was proud of the reads they made to make the baskets happened late. I thought it was extremely important for us to rebound tonight and that was a huge factor tonight. It wasn't just our forward but our guards were able to battle for some tough rebounds."
Four different players scored in double figures led by Taylor Dorsey's 22 points. Christina Robinson and Lexi Murphy each scored 16 each and Jasmine Prophet added 12 points. Robinson led the rebounding efforts with nine and Prophet grabbed eight boards.
UTSA started the game by jumping out to a 6-2 lead within the first three minutes of the opening quarter. A Dorsey layup cut it to four but the Roadrunners held on to the lead until the 4:37 mark. Dorsey used her speed for another layup to put ASU up 9-8. The layups sparked an 11-0 run highlighted by a Lexi Murphy 3-pointer to extend the lead to 18-8 with 2:15 left in the first quarter. UTSA scored the final four points to cut ASU's advantage to 18-12.
The Roadrunners opened the second quarter with a 7-3 run to make it 22-21 but Dorsey again scored a layup off a fast break to bring the score to 24-21. The two teams would continue to exchange baskets with the Belles leading as much as five with a free throw from Bria Frierson at the 3:55 mark. UTSA hung around and were down 39-36 with under a minute to play. The Roadrunners would score five of the last six points including a buzzer beater three from Loryn Goodwin to take the lead at halftime 41-40.
The Belles came out in the third quarter and held UTSA to just 33.3-percent from the field. ASU was able to shoot 45.7-percent from the field and outscore the Roadrunners 21-16. Tied at 49 at the 7:16 mark , Murphy hit a pair of free throws to give the Belles a lead they wouldn't relinquish. Robinson scored six straight points and a Prophet layup at the end of the third quarter put ASU up 61-57 going into the fourth. Prophet scored 10 of her 12 points in the second half.
Keanna Kelly found Prophet for a layup to and a few plays later Kelly setup Murphy for a 3-pointer for a 71-62 lead with 6:14 to play in the game. The Belles answered every Roadrunner basket including a crucial one with 2:41 to play. UTSA's Goodwin hit a layup to cut the deficit to 80-77 but Murphy hit her third 3-pointer of the night to put ASU up 83-77. Madi Greenwood sank a pair of free throws with three seconds left for the final 85-77.
UTSA was led by a game-high 37 points from Goodwin. Carlie Heineman scored 17 and Tesha Smith added 11 points.
The Belles will head to Laredo to open the season against Texas A&M International on Saturday, Nov. 19.
