TCU Women Defeat UC Irvine
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FORT WORTH, Texas – Veja Hamilton rattled off a career-best 24 points to lead the TCU women’s basketball team to a 78-56 victory over UC Irvine on Tuesday night at the University Recreation Center. The Horned Frogs claimed their fourth straight victory to close non-conference play with an 8-3 record.
The junior guard was 11-of-14 from the field and 2-of-2 from the free-throw line while grabbing six rebounds in 30 minutes of action.
Fellow junior Zahna Medley reached double figures for the ninth time in 10 games this season with 13 points, while senior guard Donielle Breaux added 12 points off a 4-of-6 effort from the field.
The Horned Frogs struggled from the field early on, connecting on just four of their first 17 shots to trail the Anteaters by a 19-13 deficit.
Hamilton put TCU back on the right track, hitting back-to-back jumpers to cut the deficit down to two at the 9:33 mark of the first half.
TCU regained its early lead on back-to-back 3-pointers from Medley and Chelsea Prince for a 23-21 advantage with 6:12 remaining.
With the Frogs trailing UC Irvine by two with just over five minutes left
in the opening half, Hamilton connected on four of the next five TCU buckets before Medley drained her second trey of the contest for a 10-point advantage at the 1:30 mark.
Breaux closed the half by going coast-to-coast for a layup at the buzzer, giving TCU a 42-32 advantage at the break.
The Frogs closed the half connecting on 12 of their final 17 shots, including a perfect 5-of-5 mark from 3-point range after a 0-for-5 start.
TCU kept a comfortable distance throughout the second half, relying on a 15-of-18 mark from the free-throw line, including 3-point plays from Breaux and junior forward Caitlin Diaz.
Prince added nine points, six rebounds and three steals, while senior Natalie Ventress posted seven points and a team-best eight rebounds.
The Frogs dominated the rebounding battle by a 49-29 margin while shooting 45 percent (26-of-58) from the field and 80 percent (20-of-25) from the charity stripe.
TCU opens Big 12 play on the road at Texas Tech at 4 p.m., CT Sunday in a televised contest on FSN. The Frogs will host Iowa State in the Big 12 home opener at 7 p.m., on Jan. 7.
