TCU Women Defeat Abilene Christian
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FORT WORTH, Texas – Three Horned Frogs scored in double figures as the TCU women’s basketball team dominated all phases of the contest in an 82-55 victory over Abilene Christian on Thursday evening at Daniel-Meyer Coliseum to improve to 7-3 overall this season.
Sophomore guard Veja Hamilton enjoyed an all-around performance with 18 points and career highs of six assists and five steals in just 23 minutes. The Spring, Texas, native was 6-of-9 from the field and 6-of-7 from the free-throw line.
Junior guard Natalie Ventress continued her hot streak with 15 points off a 7-of-10 effort from the field for her fourth-straight game of double figures, while fellow junior Donielle Breaux added 11 points and three assists in just 14 minutes.
After an early flurry of 3-pointers by Abilene Christian, the Horned Frogs quickly built a comfortable lead, using a 17-2 run over a seven-minute span to pull out to a 27-13 advantage.
As has been the case in recent games, Ventress helped sparked the run by knocking down three of TCU’s next four buckets to close out the run.
Hamilton helped the Horned Frogs finish the first half strong, draining back-to-back jumpers before swiping a steal and going coast-to-coast for the layup. Hamilton netted her career-best sixth assist when she found Zahna Medley open for a 3-point bucket with just under three minutes remaining as TCU would build a 46-23 lead at the break.
The Wildcats (7-4) clawed back to a 17-point deficit five minutes into the second half by using a 12-4 run before Breaux snapped the skid by finding freshman forward Jada Butts open on
an inbounds pass and following with a 3-pointer.
The Horned Frogs kept the heat on when Ventress drained a 3-pointer and Hamilton followed on the ensuing possession with a steal and an old-fashioned 3-point play to cap a 19-4 run as TCU held its largest lead of the night at 71-39 with 8:15 remaining.
TCU tied a season-high with 19 assists and shot 57-percent (32-of-56) from the field, marking the second-highest rate this season.
TCU’s defense also put on a show, forcing 23 turnovers with 16 steals while limiting a Wildcat offense that was averaging over 81 points per game to just 55 points and a 35-percent (19-of-55) effort from the field. The Horned Frogs also dominated the glass by a 40-24 margin.
The Horned Frogs will play their third game in a five-day span when they host Sam Houston State at 5 p.m., on Friday at Daniel-Meyer Coliseum.
