TAMUC – Sports

Dorian Armstrong named LSC Defensive Player of the Week for No. 18 Lions.

RICHARDSON – Texas A&M University-Commerce forward Dorian Armstrong has been named the Lone Star Conference Defensive Player of the Week. The award was announced Monday by the conference office. It is the fourth time Armstrong has been named Defensive Player of the Week in his A&M-Commerce career.

Armstrong- a senior from Detroit, Mich.- had a significant impact on the defensive end for the No. 18 Lions in both of their wins last week. He had two steals and a block to go along with eight rebounds in the Lions’ 73-62 win over Texas A&M-Kingsville. Armstrong then had eight rebounds, four steals, and a block against Angelo State in the 84-73 victory. He was a significant part of the Lion defense that helped overcome a 17-point first half deficit versus ASU. Armstrong helped the Lions hold opponents to 67.5 points per game. He is fourth in the LSC in rebounding (7.5 per game).

Armstrong and the 13-1 Lions host Tarleton State on Tuesday in the final game of their three-game homestand. The game will be at 7:30 p.m. at the Field House.

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

Brianna Wise

Lions turn up the pressure late to knock off Angelo State 78-74.

COMMERCE– The Texas A&M University-Commerce women’s basketball team defeated Angelo State University 78-74 on Saturday. The Lions turned on the heat defensively in the final minutes to get the win.

The victory brings the Lions to 8-5 on the year and 5-1 in the Lone Star Conference. The Rambelles fall to 8-4 on the year and 3-3 in conference play.

The Lions face a quick turnaround with an early week game against Tarleton State on Tuesday. The game will be at 5:30 p.m. at the Field House.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
– Brianna Wise led all scorers with 22 points in the game, scoring nine points from the foul line. It is her sixth game with at least 20 points this season.
– Princess Davis had a season-high 19 points in the game. She also had two assists.
– Artaejah Gay had 16 points and a season-high nine rebounds.
– Melanie Ransom had 15 points, all of which came in the second half. She went 6-of-7 in the second half.
– The Lions shot 59 percent from the field in the fourth quarter.
– After committing 13 turnovers in the first half, the Lions cleaned up their game and had just three giveaways in the second half. ASU had 19 turnovers in the game.

HOW IT HAPPENED
The Lions struggled from the field to start the contest, missing their first six shots of the game. It was a free throw that got the Lions on the board. The Lion defense was also on point, but offensive rebounds gave the Rambelles extra possessions in the opening minutes. Midway through the quarter, ASU held a 6-1 lead.

The Lion offense started to heat up late in the period. Davis hit a jumper and also had a fast-break layup as the Lions went on a 6-0 run to take a 7-6 lead. ASU stopped the route there and made a three. Gay then had a jumper to tie the score. A late free throw from Davis gave the Lions a 12-11 lead after one quarter.

Both teams continued to struggle with ball security and field goals as both hit just one bucket apiece in the first four minutes of the quarter. The Rambelles started to find a rhythm, scoring back-to-back buckets to give ASU a three-point lead. The Lions fought back, scoring consecutive buckets of their own to lead 20-19 midway through the quarter.

ASU had a three-point play as the lead again changed hands with four minutes to play. It was part of a 7-0 run that gave ASU a 27-21 lead with three minutes to play in half. The Rambelles made seven consecutive shots to push their lead to as many as seven. Davis drew a foul with one second to play and sunk both free throws to send the Lions into the half trailing 32-27.

Wise and Davis both had 11 points in the first half. There were 25 turnovers in the first half. The Rambelles scored 11 points off of 13 Lion turnovers while A&M-Commerce had just two points off of 12 ASU giveaways. The Rambelles had 20 points in the paint while the Lions had 12. Only three Lions scored in the

The Lions scored the first two buckets of the second half to cut the Rambelle lead to just one point. ASU responded to bring their lead back up to six. ASU caught fire from long range early in the quarter, pushing their lead to nine points. Midway through the quarter, the Lions trailed by seven.

The Lions began to rally late in the third, scoring six points in a row. Ransom had two buckets on the fast break to help the Lions cut the lead to three. It was part of an 11-1 run, which got capped with a three-point play from Wise to give the Lions their first lead of the second half. The Lions led 48-47 with just under two minutes left.

ASU had a three-point play of its own to take the lead back. The Lions continued to drive into the paint and drew a couple of late whistles and finished the third quarter trailing 57-54.

The Lions started the fourth quarter well, stopping the Rambelle offense and executing their own. A spin move in the lane from Ransom gave the Lions a 60-59 lead with eight minutes left. It was a 6-0 run that gave the Lions a three-point lead. ASU then had two consecutive steals and fast break layups to retake the lead. A three from Gay tied the game at 65 with 4:30 to play.

Ransom continued to shoot well. She grabbed an offensive rebound and made a strong move to the bucket to make a difficult shot. Gay then made a bucket on a perfect lob pass from Davis. Wise hit a three to cap off the run, and the Lions held their largest lead of the game. The Lions pushed their lead to as many as eight in the final minute.

 

MEN’S BASKETBALL

Aaron Horn

No. 18 Lions overcome 17-point first half deficit to run away with an 84-73 win over Angelo State.

COMMERCE– The No. 18 Texas A&M University-Commerce men’s basketball team defeated Angelo State 84-73 on Saturday afternoon. The Lions trailed by 17 points early in the first half before climbing back into the game and eventually running away with the contest.

The win brings the Lions to 13-1 on the season and 6-0 in the Lone Star Conference. The Rams fall to 11-3 and 3-2 in conference play.

The Lions return to action on Tuesday against Tarleton State in the final game of their three-game homestand. The game will be at 7:30 p.m. at the Field House in Commerce.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
– Aaron Horne led the Lions with 21 points, shooting 8-of-11 from the field. He added six rebounds.
– Daquane Willford had 16 points, a season high. He also had four rebounds, two assists, and two steals.
– Reggie Reid had 14 points and led the team with seven assists. Willie Rooks also had 14 points.
– Srdan Budimir had 10 points. Dorian Armstrong had seven points, eight rebounds, three assists and four steals.
– The Lions started the game shooting 3-of-12 while ASU shot 9-of-12 to begin. ASU led 21-4 after 7:16 of play.
– After trailing by 17, the Lions went on a 21-3 run to take the lead with 6:30 left in the first half.
– A&M-Commerce scored 23 points off of 18 ASU turnovers.

HOW IT HAPPENED
The Rams started the game on a tear, making seven shots in a row to build an early lead. They began 9-of-12 from the field, creating a 17-point advantage in the first six minutes of the game. The Lions were cold to start, missing nine of their first 12 shots.

The Lions started to see the ball fall through the bucket, cutting the Ram lead to 13 points midway through the half. Willford then hit a three to cut the lead to 25-15 with nine minutes to play. Willford had another layup on the fast break to cut the lead down to single digits.

The Lion defense started to pick up as ASU’s shooting started to come back down to Earth. The Lions continued their run, pushing it to 14-0 over a three-minute span. Armstrong and Horne both had threes in the field, and the Lions trailed just 25-23 with seven minutes to play.

After ASU broke up the run with a free throw, the Lions continued to drop in shots. Budimir hit a three with 6:30 to play to give the Lions their first lead of the game. ASU was cold, going without a field goal for more than five minutes. With just under three minutes left in half, the game tied at 30.

Reid scored on a three-point play to give the Lions a three-point lead. A late layup from Horne took the Lions into halftime with a 37-32 lead.

After making nine of their first 11 shots, the Rams shot 5-of-15 in the rest of the half while the Lions made 11 of their final 19 shots to cut into the lead. The Lions used ASU turnovers to their advantage, scoring 15 points off of 11 ASU turnovers. Reid led the team with nine points in the first half. Willford had eight points, and Horne had seven.

The Lions scored the first basket of the second half before ASU went on a 9-0 run to retake the lead just four minutes into the second half. Rooks hit a three to stop the run and give the Lions back the lead. Willford also had a three as the Lions built their lead back up to six after an 8-0 run.

ASU went on another run to retake the lead with 13 minutes left in the game. This time it was Horne who hit a three to give the Lions back the lead. After ASU cut the Lion lead to two points, Budimir hit a three to bring it to five. With six minutes left, the Lions held a 62-55 lead.

The Lion defense again was stifling for the Rams, as they held them without a field goal for more than four minutes. The Lions brought their lead to nine points with four minutes to play.

The Lions pushed their lead to as many as 15 late in the game.