STEPHENVILLE – Tarleton women's basketball topped West Texas A&M 64-57 to move into a tie for third place in the Lone Star Conference on Thursday in Wisdom Gym.
 
The TexAnns (7-8, 6-3) held the Lady Buffs (13-5, 6-3) to a season-low in points in LSC play and was led offensively by Mackenzie Hailey's sixth straight double-double of 17 points and 12 rebounds. The TexAnns, who have won two straight LSC games, also snapped WT's five-game winning streak. The TexAnns, along with WT and Texas A&M-Commerce, are in a three-way tie for third place in the LSC.
 
The first quarter featured five lead changes and six ties, but the TexAnns kept responding on the offensive end to lead 15-14 after the first ten minutes.
 
Tiara Tatum's 3-pointer and Hailey's jumper gave Tarleton its biggest lead of the half at 24-18 with 4:15 to go. Tatum finished with 14 points on 5-of-7 shooting to go with four rebounds. The Lady Buffs ended the first half on a 7-0 run over the final four minutes to lead 25-24 at halftime. The TexAnns only shot 28 percent in the first half and 20 percent on 3-pointers compared to WT's 38 percent shooting.
 
The third quarter was the turning point for the TexAnns, as they outscored WT 22-13. After WT's 3-pointer to open the second half, Kyle Collins drilled a 3-pointer of her own that started a 9-0 TexAnn run to lead 33-28. Leading 35-34, Hailey connected on a mid-range jumper to end a small 6-2 WT run. WT regained the lead at 38-37, but the TexAnns closed the third quarter on another 9-0 run that was capped off on Travanti Downes' buzzer-beater to go up 46-38.
 
WT cut the Tarleton lead to 50-49 with 5:27 remaining but Bailey Wipff, who was held scoreless through three quarters, saved her scoring when the game mattered most. Wipff gave the TexAnns seven of the next nine points and also created scoring opportunities for her teammates with a game-high four assists. Wipff's scoring stretch gave Tarleton its first double-digit lead at 59-49 with 1:50 to go.
 
The TexAnns went 5-of-6 from the free-throw line down the stretch to close the game and defeat West Texas A&M for the second straight season at home. The second half defense by the TexAnns played a key part in the turnaround, as they had five blocks in the final 20 minutes, including three by Hailey.
 
Tarleton shot 63 percent in the second half and 57 percent on 3-pointers (4-7) while WT was 43 percent from the floor. Overall, Tarleton shot 42 percent to WT's 40 percent. The TexAnns are now 5-0 when the shoot better than their opponent this season.
 
Ikpeaku Iwobi scored eight points and grabbed seven rebounds while Wipff also added five rebounds to go with her seven points. Kyle Collins had five points and three assists in her second straight start.
 
Baylee Peck had seven points off the bench while Downes added four points, four rebounds and three assists. Shelby Mankins had a four-quarter bucket to round out the TexAnns scoring.
 
Tarleton will host UT-Permian Basin on Saturday, Jan. 21 at 2 p.m.