- Box Score

ALLEN – The Tarleton TexAnns faced off against Eastern New Mexico in first round action of the LSC Tournament in the Allen Event Center.  After a close first half, the TexAnns blew the game wide open in the second half and won by 19 points.

Tarleton struck first with a jumper by Lisa Parker to open the scoring.  ENMU would keep the game close at the start of the game, but eventually the TexAnns began to pull away.

With 16:27 on the clock, the game was tied at 7-7.  Over the next few minutes, Tarleton got a hold of the momentum and took a 14-10 lead.

The Zias were not going away though, and even took a lead of their own at 21-20 with 8:29 to go in the first half.

The score got to 28-27 before Tarleton put a run together.  The TexAnns out-scored the Zias 9-0 over the next four minutes and took a comfortable 36-28 lead.

Tarleton would only add to their lead as the first half came to a close.

As the teams entered the locker room, the TexAnns held a 44-30 advantage.

Tarleton shot 46.9 percent from the floor in the first half and 40 percent from three-point range.

Kiara Wright led the way with 16 points on 6-of-7 shooting and grabbed eight rebounds.  Peyton Adamson added 14 points, including four three-pointers.

The Zias shot 48 percent from the field, and had seven turnovers and nine fouls in the first half.

As the second half got underway, the TexAnns added to their lead with a mixture of inside post play and quality outside shots.

Tarleton showed why they were the No. 1 seed entering the tournament and pulled out to a 22-point lead by the midway point in the second half.  At 62-40 in favor of the TexAnns, the game was beginning to get out of reach for the Zias.

With 7:38 to go in the first round game, the TexAnns were up 66-46.

Led by Wright, Tarleton kept the difference in the game near the 20-point mark for the rest of the game.

By the final media timeout, the TexAnns had a victory all but sealed up with a 71-51 advantage.

Tarleton maintained control of the pace of the game, and in the end, the TexAnns were victorious, 75-56.

Overall, Tarleton shot 50 percent from the floor and hit 38.9 percent of their three's.  The TexAnns forced 15 turnovers in the game and held ENMU to 41.5 percent shooting.  Tarleton also out-rebounded the Zias 39-23.

Wright tied a career-high with 23 points and grabbed 11 rebounds.  Peyton Adamson added 15 points while Shelby Adamson did a little bit of everything with eight points, five rebounds, four assists and four steals.

Head coach Ronnie Hearne talked about the performance after the game.

“I am real proud of our team,” said Hearne.  “Eastern New Mexico has gotten a lot better over the season and we knew it was going to be tough.  We got the ball inside though and played hard. “

Senior post Kiara Wright also talked about the victory.

“The coaches told me if it was just one person guarding me that I should go to the basket,” said Wright.  “My teammates were able to find me when I was open.”

Senior guard Shelby Adamson discussed the importance of getting off to a fast start in the tournament.

“The first win gives you confidence under your belt,” said Adamson.  “Depth is our strength and we were able to play a lot of people.  Next is Angelo State and we have a chance to revenge our loss from two weeks ago.  We are not over-confident and have the day off to mentally prepare.”

The TexAnns will now face Angelo State at 2:30 p.m. on Saturday at the Allen Event Center.  Live stats and details can be found at the LSC Tournament central on LoneStarConference.org.

For more information regarding the 2011-12 TexAnn basketball season, check out TarletonSports.com.