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Lamar University Athletics

Jacei Denley
Jeff Kellum, LU Athletics
69
Winner Lamar University Lamar 5-3,1-0 Southland
44
UTRGV UTRGV 4-6,1-1 Southland
Winner
Lamar University Lamar
5-3,1-0 Southland
69
Final
44
UTRGV UTRGV
4-6,1-1 Southland
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Lamar University Lamar 15 15 20 19 69
UTRGV UTRGV 7 10 18 9 44

Game Recap: Women's Basketball | | Kenneth Cline, LU Asst. Director of Media Relations

Denley, Cardinals Open Southland Play in Win Column

EDINBURG, Texas - Jacei Denley opened the Southland Conference season for Lamar University by scoring a career-high 20 points, which helped the Cardinals dominate UT Rio Grande Valley from start-to-finish 69-44 at the UTRGV Fieldhouse Sunday afternoon. This marks the eighth consecutive SLC opener won by the Cardinals dating back to the 2016-17 season. 

Denley converted 66.7 percent (8-of-12) from the field including a pair of three-pointers. Her previous career-high was 19, which she set against Pacific earlier this season. Kamryn Wilson tallied 12 points while converting seven of her 10 free throw attempts. R'Mani Taylor posted all 11 of her points in the first half. The Cardinals finished the contest shooting 49 percent from the field while holding the Vaqueros to 32.7 percent. The bench played a key role outscoring UTRGV 20-8 while LU commanded the glass with a 35-27 edge in rebounds. 

Big Red opened the first quarter on a 15-2 run before the Vaqueros netted five points to cut the deficit to 15-7. The Beaumont natives of Denley (five) and Wilson (four) combined for nine points in the quarter. LU converted 38.5 percent from the field while the defense held UTRGV to 21.4 percent.  

While the Vaqueros closed the gap to 15-9 at the start of the second, the Cardinals doubled their lead and more to 27-13. This was when Houston resident Taylor went on a surge, scoring nine points to finish the first half with 11. LU hit on six of its' 10 field goal attempts in the quarter as it went into halftime up 30-17. 

In the third quarter, the Cardinals ran up 14 unanswered points with half of them coming from Denley, who finished the quarter with nine. That run, which lasted three minutes, gave LU a 27-point lead at 44-17. Over the last seven minutes, the Vaqueros outscored LU 18-6 behind five three-pointers to trail 50-35.

Any thoughts of a Vaqueros' comeback were snuffed out by the Big Red defense in the fourth quarter. The Cardinals allowed three field goals on 12 shot attempts by UTRGV. Denley continued her hot second half with six points to reach her career-high. In total, LU's 19 points resulted in the 69-44 final.

LU concludes its road trip Tuesday by heading up northwest to Lubbock to face with Texas Tech Tuesday. The game will tip off early at 11:30 a.m., at the United Supermarkets Arena. 
 
#PeckEm

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