Texas A&M
21-5, 11-3
Texas Tech
15-13, 6-8
Texas A&M 67, Texas Tech 51
Feb 21, 2007 | Women's Basketball
February 21, 2007
Junior Morenike Atunrase (Shreveport, La.) had 18 points and five rebounds to lift No. 16 Texas A&M to a 67-51 victory over Texas Tech Wednesday night at Reed Arena.
The Aggies (21-5, 11-3) scored the first 10 points of the game and led 37-24 at halftime. They went 5-of-6 from the floor in their game-opening 10-0 stretch. A&M picked up its first-ever sweep over Texas Tech in the Big 12 Conference era and in the all-time series. They also extended their home court winning streak to a program-best 17 consecutive games at Reed Arena.
Atunrase went 5-of-8 from the field and 6-of-7 from the free-throw line. She recorded her 1,000th career point against the Lady Raiders. Sophomore Danielle Gant (Oklahoma City, Okla.) added 13 points and seven rebounds, while junior A?™Quonesia Franklin (Tyler, Texas) had 11 points and seven rebounds for the Aggies. Sophomore La Toya Micheaux (Missouri City, Texas) led Texas A&M with a career-high 13 rebounds.
Jordan Murphree had 19 points and six rebounds to lead the Lady Raiders (15-13, 6-8). She hit 6-of-14 from the field and made all seven of her free throws. Texas Tech pulled to 39-32 with 15:42 remaining in the game but could get no closer. Texas A&M went on an 8-2 run, with Atunrase scoring all eight points, to take a 47-34 lead with 12:02 left. The Aggies?™ lead grew to 19 points with 3:08 remaining.
Both teams struggled from the field. The Aggies hit only 40 percent of their shots for the game, but the Lady Raiders fared even worse. Tech shot only 33 percent and turned the ball over 20 times. A&M scored 16 of its final 67 points off Tech miscues.
A&M travels to No. 14-ranked Baylor (24-4, 11-3) on Sunday, Feb. 25 at 1 p.m. The game will be televised nationally on ESPN2.
Postgame Notes...With the victory, A&M ties the program?™s most victories in Big 12 Conference play with an 11-3 mark and claims its first-ever sweep over Texas Tech in 63 tries?...It marks only the third time in school history to record 11 wins in conference play including the 1993-94 season (11-3) while members of the Southwest Conference and the 2005-06 season (11-3) as members of the Big 12?...Of their three 11-win seasons in league competition, the 2006-07 squad was the fastest to reach 11 wins in league competition?...The Aggies extend their home court winning streak to a program-best tying 17-straight contests at Reed Arena?...They are an undefeated 15-0 at home this season?...A&M previously won 17-straight during its 1994-95 campaign?...It marks the ninth-longest home court winning streak in the nation?...Of their 11 wins in the all-time series versus Texas Tech, A&M?™s 16-point margin of victory over the Lady Raiders ties for the second-largest margin of defeat behind a 17-point victory (80-63) on Nov. 26, 1976 and 16-point victory (62-46) on Jan. 27, 1979?...None of the current Aggies on the 14-player roster were born at that time?...Last season, A&M claimed their 11th victory in Big 12 play in the regular season finale at Oklahoma State on March 1, 2006 and their 11th victory in SWC play against Baylor on March 2, 1994?...Historically, A&M had never swept Texas Tech in the all-time series dating back to the 1975-76 season?...It was their first back-to-back wins over a Tech squad since a 62-46 win on Jan. 27, 1979 and 66-64 win on Feb. 4, 1980?...Junior Morenike Atunrase recorded her 1,000th career point with 18 points on the night?...She became the 18th player in school history to reach the milestone and the first since A&M standout Toccara Williams did so during her senior campaign in 2003-04?...Her 18 against Tech marked her 12th double-digit game of the season and tied a personal best as the second-most points scored in Big 12 play?...Atunrase has tabulated 1,010 career points to date?...Sophomore La Toya Micheaux set career-highs in rebounds (13) and blocks (5) against the Lady Raiders?...Micheaux has grabbed double figure boards seven times this season?...Junior A?™Quonesia Franklin also brought down a season-high seven rebounds?...The Aggies have now shot better than 40 percent in five of their last six outings?...They shot 40.0 percent (22-of-55) against the Lady Raiders and opened the game nearly flawless going 5-of-6 from the floor with a 10-0 run?...The A&M defense held Tech to just 32.7 percent (17-of-52) shooting from the field?...A&M remains tied for first place in the Big 12 Conference title race with Oklahoma (11-3) and Baylor (11-3).
POSTGAME QUOTES
TEXAS A&M HEAD COACH GARY BLAIR
On the game and staying in the hunt for the Big 12 Conference title ?...
?We really wanted to focus on this game and not look ahead to the next ballgame (Baylor). We have been blowing out teams by only one or two points. When you have a chance to play for something of this magnitude, you give it everything, every possession. We did not play at the level that we were capable of playing tonight. It has nothing to do with Texas Tech, it has to do with Texas A&M. We started off the game and it could have been 30-6, if we could have converted in transition. We were going to keep pressing and forcing turnovers against them. We have to be in better condition to be able to do what we want to do and force the tempo. I was very pleased with how we got on the boards in the first half. I thought we did a very good job on limiting them to one shot and having to make five-second drives. We do not have the Phoenix Suns?™ fastbreak of finishing right now, but at least we are getting out and making things happen. Other than that, we won the game. But as a team, we know we can play better. I know Coach Curry will say that it was not one of their better ballgames. It wasn?™t our best effort and it wasn?™t Tech?™s best effort.?
On vying for a Big 12 Championship title and being ranked behind Baylor and OU ?...
?We have to earn our stripes and we are wiling to wait our turn until we prove that we are for real. Whatever happens in these last two ballgames, we are going to leave it on the court. We are better than how we played tonight, but know we have the chance to play for a conference championship. I love the way my kids compete and play hard. We played for that trophy tonight and we will again. Champions win championships. Right now, our kids have worked hard for this moment and I think we have earned it.?
On Texas Tech ?...
?Give Jordan Murphree a lot of credit. She was beating us off the dribble and did a good job. Our No. 1 goal on defense was to stop (Alesha) Robertson and that was all Danielle Gant. We stopped their best player. (La Toya) Micheaux did a great job on the boards. She hustles and keys our whole defensive effort.?
On the parity of the Big 12 and Texas Tech?™s chances of making the NCAA Tournament ?...
?Anybody who gets to 8-8 with a schedule you have to play, knowing this year there is no bottom in this league. There is parity and there is no bottom. This is how it used to be when I was in the SEC, there?™s no bottom. We were sending seven or eight teams (to the NCAA Tournament). This is how good this league is now. It isn?™t one team is playing that bad of a ballgame, everyone is good enough. You have a lot of good freshman in this league right now including (Jordan) Murphree.?
SOPHOMORE CENTER LA TOYA MICHEAUX
On her game plan against Texas Tech inside ?...
?My game plan was to defend, box her (Alesha Robertson) out and try to keep her under 10 (points). I used the same mentality of ball pressure ?- denying her the ball and playing defense. Defense will win the game for us.?
JUNIOR GUARD/FORWARD MORENIKE ATUNRASE
On recording her 1,000th career point and getting back into a rhythm after being injured twice this season ?...
?It was something I did not focus on before the game. I was just trying to go out and contribute to the team and be the old person that I used to be. It?™s both mental and physical for me (in the recovery process) and I think that happens with any player. I?™m fine, I?™m better and I can go. Going into the game, Coach Blair had us focused on why this game was important as well as our road game at Baylor and last home game against Texas. We just take each one game-by-game. As always, we go into games looking for defensive stops and forcing turnovers in the back court. I think we excelled in that tonight. We will have to bring our A game on the road this weekend (at Baylor).?
TEXAS TECH HEAD COACH KRISTY CURRY
On Texas A&M ?...
?I thought the first four minutes of the game, they (Texas A&M) dictated everything about the game. We were never able, from that point on, to come out and be aggressive. When you are an attacking aggressive team as A&M is, you have to come out and be just as aggressive and attack them likewise. We didn?™t do a great job of that today. We were letting them be physical inside. The bottom line is, we were out of our spacing and our angles out in the perimeters. Our timing was off. Give A&M credit. They did a great job against us and everyone who has been in this building (Reed Arena) this season. They are athletic and used that to their advantage tonight. They make you find a way to get the ball in the basket.?
On making postseason play and a must-win situation for Tech in its final two ballgames ?...
?Must wins take care of a lot of things for you right now. Our goal is to go 2-0 and finish in the top six in this league. If we can just find a way to do that, we feel like we have a shot of getting in (to the NCAA Tournament) because of our strength of schedule. I believe we have the toughest non-conference schedule in the league and hopefully that will work to our advantage down the stretch. I?™ll give anything to see our four seniors finish that way.?
TEXAS TECH SENIOR FORWARD ALESHA ROBERTSTON
On the game ?...
?This was a big game for us. We really needed to come in here and play well and we didn?™t. We just needed to attack more. We have two more games left and we have to have wins (to make the NCAA Tournament).?
