KINGSVILLE, Texas –  Behind three starters in double figures, West Texas A&M women's basketball downed Texas A&M-Kingsville 70-49 Thursday evening for its 20^th win of the season as the Lady Buffs improved to 20-6 overall and 13-4 in Lone Star Conference play.  The Lady Buffs extended their winning streak to a season-best seven games. 

WT senior Sasha Watson paced the team with 16 points on seven of 11 from the field with eight rebounds, four assists and two steals.  Senior Maddison Wild had 13 points with two triples and six rebounds, while junior Sydney Walton added 12 points and a game-high five steals.   WT shot 25 of 53 from the field for 47.2 percent and was seven of 19 from beyond the arc, while going 13 of 20 from the line.  WT held a 35-25 lead in rebounding and forced TAMUK into 18 turnovers, leading 29-4 in points off turnovers and 14-7 in second chance points.

The 20 wins marked the fifth-straight season of 20 or more wins and 28^th season of 20 or more wins since 1980-81.

TAMUK (11-12, 6-11 LSC) shot an even 40 percent for the game on 18 of 45.  The Javelinas were two of 11 from beyond the arc and 11 of 17 from the line.  Three players off the bench led the team with 13 points from Angelica Wilson and 10 points each from Emmeri Archer and Shaq DeBose. 

Unlike the first meeting between the two teams where TAMUK jumped out to the early lead, WT scored the first five points of the game on a bucket from senior Sasha Watson and the "and one" from Walton.  TAMUK scored the next six for an early 6-5 lead on a jumper from Angelica Wilson, but junior Cece Wooten had the answer at the other end for a 7-6 lead. 

Out of the first media timeout, Watson scored two quick buckets for an 11-6 WT lead with 2:38 left in the opening quarter.  Senior Alie Decker buried her first triple for a 14-8 WT lead.  She finished with a team-high three triples and nine points.  Watson was hacked in the lane missing two shots, but a lane violation on TAMUK gave her another chance where she converted for a 15-8 lead with 24 seconds left in the quarter.  WT opened the game six of 15 from the field, while TAMUK was just three of 11 through the first quarter. 

Kaylee Kana pulled TAMUK within 15-10 on a layup with 8:57 left in the half. From there, WT made nine of the next 13 points for a 24-14 lead and then senior Lilley Vander Zee earned the "and one" for a 27-14 lead with just over four minutes left in the half.  WT, who entered second nationally in field goal shooting, began heating up making four of seven buckets in the second quarter for 45.5 percent for the game to that point. 

Junior Madison Parker made one of two free throws for a 28-15 lead with 3:30 left in the half for the largest lead of the game by WT.  Following the seventh turnover by the Javelinas, Wooten scored inside off an assist from Parker for a 30-15 lead. 

A triple from DeBose cut the WT lead back to ten at 30-20, but Walton buried a triple at the other end for a 33-20 lead with one minute left in the half. 

For the half, WT shot 48 percent on 12 of 25 from the field and was three of nine from beyond the arc, while going six of nine from the line.  Watson and Walton led the way with eight points each, while Decker had six points on a pair of treys.

TAMUK, led by five points from DeBose and Wilson each off the bench, shot eight of 26 from the field for 30.8 percent.  The Javelinas were one of eight from range and three of four from the line.  WT held a 12-0 lead in points off turnovers as the Javelinas had seven miscues in the half, while the Lady Buffs committed six turnovers. 

The Lady Buffs kept up the strong play in the third quarter, but DeBose found easy sledding inside for the Javelinas.  Senior Bailey Thiel buried a triple for a 41-26 lead with 4:32 left in the quarter and a media timeout.  The fouls started mounting up for the Lady Buffs, but the Javelinas were making just one of two shots each time. 

Senior Maddison Wild buried a triple for the Lady Buffs' first field goal since the 4:32 mark and she then scored inside for a 50-31 lead at the end of three quarters.

WT came out on fire in the fourth quarter with a layup from Watson, triple from Wild and a jumper in the paint from senior Lilley Vander Zee, for a 57-31 lead with just over eight minutes left for the largest lead of the game.  

The Lady Buffs went on for the 70-49 victory improving to 20-6 overall and 13-4 in Lone Star Conference play.

WT continues on the road at #/22/24 Angelo State Saturday at 2 p.m. in San Angelo Texas.  Both teams sit tied for second in the league standings with three games to play and sit two games back of league-leader Eastern New Mexico.  Fans can access live stats, audio/video streaming links at www.gobuffsgo.com on the women's basketball schedule page.