SAN ANTONIO – A stingy second half defense lifted the St. Mary's Women's Basketball team to its third-straight victory with a 60-38 win over Texas-Tyler on Saturday afternoon.
Tied at 29-29 with 5:59 left in the third quarter, the Rattlers (4-6, 4-6 Lone Star Conference) shut down the Patriots (0-8, 0-8 Lone Star), allowing only one free throw until the 2:50 point of the fourth quarter and building a 24-point lead during that stretch of 13:09.
Sophomore
Briley Perkins (Houston) scored 12 points – all in the second half – while senior
Hannah Wilson (Fredericksburg, Texas) posted her third-straight double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds.
The Rattlers blocked a season-high seven shots, led by Wilson's two and five others swatted one each. The Blue & Gold also connected on a season-best 11 three-pointers, bettering Wednesday's total of 10. In three total meetings with the Patriots the Rattlers have drained 35 triples (21 this season).
Sophomore
Tonia Bilic (Zagreb, Croatia) recorded a career-best nine rebounds, while freshman
Juliett Martinez (San Antonio) scored a career-high nine points, hitting three-of-four from beyond the arc. Freshman
Maya Simon (Corpus Christi, Texas) led all players with a career-high four steals and senior
Mya Culiver (Rockwall, Texas) tied for game-high honors with five assists.
The 38 points by UT-Tyler is the fewest allowed by St. Mary's since Feb. 7, 2019 against Texas A&M International (W, 72-35).
Next week's contests against Texas A&M International have been postponed due to Covid-19 protocols, so the next game for the Rattlers will be Feb. 12 at 5 p.m. inside Bill Greehey Arena.
INDIVIDUAL PLAYER & TEAM NOTES
- In two games this season against UT-Tyler, sophomore Briley Perkins hit eight three-pointers, scoring 24 points.
- The seven blocked shots by St. Mary's ties for the 10th most in single-game history. The last time the Rattlers blocked seven was March 3, 2020 in the first round of the Lone Star Conference Tournament.
- In back-to-back games this year against the Patriots, the Rattlers have hit 21 three-pointers – 10 at Tyler on Wednesday and 11 on Saturday in San Antonio.
- The Rattlers are now 3-0 all-time against Texas-Tyler.
- Senior Hannah Wilson recorded her third-straight double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds, giving her four on the year and 22 for her career.
- With her start, Wilson now has 87 for her career moving her into sole possession of fifth place on the school's career starts list. With two more, she will tie Ashton Benford (2005-09) for fourth.
