STEPHENVILLE, Texas – Tarleton outshot Sam Houston on Thursday night, but the Texans couldn't escape their 30 turnovers as they dropped their eighth contest in the last nine games.
The Texans (7-11, 1-6 WAC) fell 81-66 to Sam Houston (7-9, 3-3 WAC) at Wisdom Gym, now 6-3 in Stephenville this year. This is the first time since 1981 Tarleton has lost to Sam Houston, snapping a three-game winning streak in the series. Tarleton's 30 turnovers resulted in 31 points for the Bearkats, marking a season-high of giveaways by a wide margin, surpassing their 23 turnovers at Grand Canyon on Jan. 5.
Tarleton was 6-1 when outshooting their opponents entering the game. The Texans made 22-of-46 (.478) from the field, including 5-of-12 (.417) from distance, plus 17-of-20 (.850) from the free throw line. The Bearkats had 25 more shot attempts than Tarleton, making 30-of-71 (.423) from the field, 4-of-13 (.308) from distance and 17-of-24 (.708) from the stripe.
The Texans started Thursday's game strong, turning Sam Houston away on their first six opportunities, leading to an 8-2 Tarleton lead three minutes in. The Texans led 12-8 with 1:49 left in the frame, when the Bearkats ended the quarter on a 10-0 run to lead 18-12 after the first. They led the remainder of the game.
In the second quarter, it was Tarleton's turn to end the quarter well, making a 10-point deficit six at the break, 32-26. In the third, Tarleton was within seven at 35-28 before Sam Houston went on a 14-0 run to open a 21-point lead, 49-28. The Bearkats led 58-40 after three.
In the fourth,
Chloe Callahan came off the bench and energized the crowd, scoring nine straight points for the Texans on four consecutive possessions, turning a 20-point hole into 13. But the Texans were too far back to have a chance at the end.
Mayra Caicedo had a team-high 12 points on 5-of-9 shooting, three assists, two rebounds and two steals.
Elise Turrubiates made her first start of the year, recording 11 points and five rebounds.
Tyler Jackson led the reserves with 10 points on 4-of-8 shooting. Callahan finished with nine points (2-2 FG, 1-1 3PT, 4-4 FT) and two rebounds in seven minutes.
Viktoria Ivanova pulled down a team-high seven rebounds, adding eight points (3-6 FG).
Sam Houston's Madelyn Batista scored a game-high 25 points on 9-of-16 shooting, to go with six rebounds. Chyna Allen had 14 points, six assists, four rebounds and two steals. Mikayla Woods rounded out the double figures group with 10 points, nine rebounds and two steals.
Tarleton will have a week to reset before their next game, set for Thursday, Jan. 26, at 8 p.m. CT at Utah Tech.
