RICHARDSON, Texas–The UMHB women’s basketball team will have to wait two more days for a shot at their 20th win of the season.
A subpar offensive effort on the road yielded a second loss in American Southwest Conference play for the 17th-ranked Crusaders, who dropped a 68-60 result at UT-Dallas on Thursday night.
It marked UMHB’s second road loss in the last five games, after starting the season with 16 victories in its first 17 contests. UMHB is now 19-3 overall, and 11-2 in the ASC, tied with Hardin-Simmons for first place in the league standings. UTD is 17-5 overall, with a 9-4 league record.
“We never got into any good offensive rhythm,” UMHB head coach Katie Novak-Lenoir said postgame. “They were tougher than us and played through adversity and our runs. Defensively we would get the stop and then give up an offensive board that we needed. Credit to UTD for coming ready and getting us on our heels. It took us too long to catch up.”
The offense was cold all night against the top-rated defense in the conference, as the Crusaders shot just 28.3 percent from the field, their lowest shooting percentage in a game this season. Even a near-perfect 22-of-25 performance at the free throw line could not overcome the shooting struggles, which were certainly compounded by UTD’s relentless defensive approach.
UMHB’s 20 turnovers turned into 20 points for the Comets, who notably held UMHB scoreless for the first 6:25 of the third quarter, as UTD took a 41-28 lead. The Cru ended up shooting just 2-of-17 in the third, and were unable to dig out of the 13-point deficit that they faced entering the final 10 minutes.
Arieona Rosborough returned to the lineup after an extended absence due to injury and led the team with 17 points, though 11 of those came at the free throw line as she shot just 3-of-12 from the field. Lauren Baker was the only other Crusader in double figures, as Baker tallied 14 points on a 4-of-13 shooting day.
The game was a back-and-forth duel out of the gate, as UMHB scored the game’s first points on Ashley Faux’s layup before UTD countered with five straight points and an Alex Bowman 3-pointer that put the Comets in the lead. The Cru trailed by as many as five points in the opening quarter but closed it on an 8-2 scoring spurt that was capped by a go-ahead layup from Baker for a 14-13 advantage.
UMHB also scored first in the second quarter, thanks to a 3-pointer from Faux, though UTD’s 9-0 run gave the Comets an advantage they held for the remainder of the contest. Blythe Williams’ jumper with 7:04 left in the second put UTD up 22-17, A 13-2 run followed almost immediately, with the Comets taking control as Addy Self’s layup at the 1:58 mark put UTD ahead, 35-23. UTD led 37-28 at halftime.
The third quarter saw the lengthy scoring drought from The Cru, though UTD struggled to find points as well, and ended up only outscoring UMHB, 11-7, during the 10-minute stretch. UMHB won the fourth quarter, 25-20, but never completely challenged UTD for the lead. A free throw from Rosborough with 2:12 left cut the UTD advantage to 57-51, though Williams immediately answered with a layup that extended the Comets’ lead back to nine.
UMHB’s final road trip of the regular season continues on Saturday, when the Crusaders battle Ozarks in Clarksville, Arkansas. It marks the only time during the league schedule that UMHB ventures outside of the Lone Star State, and The Cru has won four straight road games at Ozarks dating back to the 2017-18 campaign. Ozarks is 8-14 overall, with a 4-9 mark in the ASC.
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