(photo via ACU Sports)
After a convincing 96-71 victory over Wayland Baptist, the women’s basketball team hit the road for a matchup with Big-12 powerhouse Kansas State.
The game started out tightly contested, as neither team was able to build a lead larger than two points through the first 10 minutes of play.
Junior Sydney Shelstead totaled six points and junior Alexis Mason put in nine to push the Wildcats to an 18-17 lead at the end of the first quarter.
Sophomore Sierra Allen made the game 20-17 with 9:05 to go in the second quarter, on her only basket of the night. But K-State tied the game on their next offensive possession with a three-pointer and did not trail the rest of the night. K-State shot 8-20 from behind the arc, while ACU went 7-33 from three in the game.
The three-pointer gave life to a 20-5 K-State run to end the half, giving them a 37-25 lead and leaving ACU with a hefty sum to overcome in the second half.
Unfortunately for the Wildcats the second half didn’t start out much better, as they came up empty on their first 10 offensive possessions, before junior Suzzy Dimba hit a three to break a five-minute scoring drought.
K-State did not start the half much better, failing to score on their first six possessions of the third quarter. However, once they broke the scoreless streak they outscored ACU 25-10 to lead 62-35 entering the final quarter of play.
The fourth quarter was the Wildcats best defensive effort, as they only allowed 14 points. ACU also forced K-State to shoot 33% from the field and caused five turnovers in the final 10 minutes. But the Wildcats failed to find their rhythm on offense, posting a second straight 10-point quarter, making the final score 76-45.
Shelstead posted a second consecutive double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds, and the Wildcats out-rebounded K-State 45-43. Mason led the offensive attack finishing with a team-high 17 points, while Lizzy Dimba recorded five points and 10 rebounds.
ACU returns home for a three-game homestand which begins Sunday at 2 p.m. against the University of Texas at San Antonio.
