Marshall University Athletics
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UTEP
Late Rally Gives UTEP 72-61 Win Over Herd Women
2/8/2009 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Feb. 8, 2009
EL PASO, Texas - Alix Barnette led the Thundering Herd with 15 points, but it was not enough as a late run pushed UTEP to a 71-62 win over the Marshall women's basketball team Sunday afternoon at the Don Haskins Center.
Marshall (12-11, 5-5 C-USA) held a 33-31 lead at the half, but UTEP (13-10, 6-4 C-USA) finished the contest on an 11-6 run to grab the win.
Tynikki Crook was the other double-digit scorer for the Herd, finishing with 13 points and a team high seven rebounds.
The Miners had the hot hand early on, opening up a quick 7-0 lead over the first two minutes. Up 4-0, Deitra Caldwell of the Miners nailed a trey to put UTEP up 7-0. The Herd then found its groove, scoring the next six points, both coming via the old fashioned three-point play. Alyssa Hammond and Tynikki Crook were responsible for the points for MU.
With the score tied at 8-8 five minutes in, the Miners had their second spurt of the contest, scoring the next five points, three coming from Caldwell's second trey. Marshall rallied back once again. Down 14-12, Crook connected on her second three-point play of the game to give Marshall its first lead at 15-14.
Crook's shot spurned the first of what would be 11 lead changes over the final 10:37 of the half. With MU hanging on to a 24-22 lead with just over seven minutes remaining in the half, UTEP held Marshall scoreless over the next three minutes while opening up a 29-24 lead.
A field goal by Keona Brooks ended the drought, which saw Marshall close the half with a 9-2 run to take a 33-31 lead at the half. Chantelle Handy finished off the period connecting on her third three-pointer of the season.
The second half started out in the same fashion as the first with UTEP scoring the first five to retake the lead, 36-33, before the Marshall offense got back on track. The Herd scored the next seven on its way to a 40-36 lead, its largest advantage of the contest. Crook and Alix Barnette each recorded a bucket before Casey Baker hit a three.
In a game that provided several runs by both teams, UTEP rallied back to take a 47-42 lead as Fannie Goodwin of the Miners scored five and Sviatlana Trukshanina, the second leading three-point shooter in the nation, hit her second of the game to finish off the run.
After Marshall cut the lead to two points, 51-49, the Miners scored nine of the next 11 on its way to a 60-51 lead, the largest advantage either team enjoyed in the game. Four difference Miners scored during the run.
Marshall quickly got back within four, 60-56, thanks to a three-point play by Barnette and a bucket by Crook. On the next possession, UTEP pushed the lead back to seven on the strength of Trukshanina's third three. With the Herd forced to foul late, Jareica Hughes went 6-of-6 from the charity stripe in the last minute of the game to seal the win.
The Herd finished with a .414-.386 shooting advantage while the rebounds were tied at 38 apiece. A major advantage for UTEP came from the three-point line as the Miners connected on seven treys to four by the Herd.
Hughes led the Miners with 15 points. Timika Williams recorded 13 points and a game high 11 rebounds.
Marshall will be back home for a pair of games next weekend, squaring off against UCF on Friday evening at 7 p.m. before playing host to Southern Miss in the eighth annual Jam the Cam game on Sunday. Tip is set for 3:30 p.m. on ESPN2. A full list of events and promotions for Jam the Cam will be released on HerdZone this week.
