by Andre van der Merwe
Daily Lobo
The last time the UNM women's basketball team played Texas Christian, the Horned Frogs handed the Lobos a 24-point loss.
On Senior Night on Sunday at The Pit, the Lobos settled the score, cruising to a 75-54 victory.
The Lobos were unstoppable from behind the 3-point line, making 57 percent of their 3-point attempts, going 8-of-14.
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Senior Julie Briody said the earlier loss was all the motivation the team needed.
"That was one of the incentives, to get a little revenge, because we knew we didn't play up to our potential when we played there,"
she said.
With the win, the Lobos improved to 20-7 overall and 10-4 in the Mountain West Conference. TCU slipped to 19-9 and 9-5 in conference.
With two games remaining, UNM is second in the MWC standings, trailing Brigham Young, which is 20-7 and 11-3 in the conference. TCU is fifth in the MWC standings.
UNM was sloppy on Sunday, turning the ball over 25 times.
Lobo head coach Don Flanagan said the players might have shown jitters because it was the last home game of the season.
"I didn't like the fact that we turned the ball over too much," he said. "I'm not sure whether it was Senior Night, but we haven't had turnovers like that in a long time."
However, UNM forced TCU into 21 turnovers of its own.
Adrianne Ross scored more than half of the Horned Frogs' points in the second half and finished with a game-high 24.
While Ross was the only Horned Frog to finish in double figures, four Lobos finished with more than 10 points.
Junior Brandi Kimble was the top performer for the Lobos, finishing the game with 14 points and 14 rebounds. Briody scored 19 points and grabbed 10 boards.
Junior forward Dionne Marsh and senior Katie Montgomery also finished in double figures with 15 points and 12 points, respectively.
Briody said Kimble carried the team throughout the game.
"Brandi was huge, and that's something we need from Brandi on a daily basis," she said. "I know that she's capable of doing it."
Despite the poor ball control, the Lobos played well as a unit, Kimble said.
"We played pretty good as a team," she said. "The turnovers are something we can all work on, but overall, I think we all played pretty good."
The Lobos opened the game with a 19-6 run, including four 3-pointers. However, the Horned Frogs answered back, and with 1:50 left in the half, TCU pulled within six.
The Lobos retaliated with an 8-0 run and went into the locker room with a 39-25 lead.
With 13:39 left in the game, TCU pulled within five points
before Kimble led the Lobos on an
11-2 run.
Flanagan said Kimble's shots came at the perfect time.
"Brandi was big; she hit some big shots exactly when we needed them," he said.
The Lobos outrebounded TCU 44-32 and limited the Horned Frogs to nine second-chance points.
Flanagan said UNM's play on the boards was one of the biggest keys to the win.
"I knew rebounding was going to be important," he said. "It was a big difference in the game."
Women's
basketball at
UNLV
Thursday, 8 p.m.
Las Vegas
