Sunday, January 14
Denton, TX
2:00 PM CT
University of North Texas
13-3,3-1AAC
72
vs
68
Wichita State
5-12,1-4AAC
1
2
3
4
F
Wichita St.
14
18
21
15
68
North Texas
14
10
18
30
72
Fourth-Quarter Comeback Propels Women’s Basketball to 72-68 Victory Over Wichita State
1/14/2024 5:28:00 PM | Women's Basketball
The Mean Green trailed by as many as 18 points in the second half
DENTON, Texas – The UNT women's basketball team erased an 18-point deficit in the second half to down Wichita State, 72-68, in a Sunday afternoon thriller inside The Super Pit.
The Mean Green faced their second-largest deficit of the season trailing 51-33 with 2:02 left to go in the third quarter. From there, North Texas would outscore Wichita State 39-17 in the program's largest comeback since 2018.
DesiRay Kernal and Dyani Robinson each posted 11 points in the fourth quarter, while Tommisha Lampkin added eight to spur the rally. The trio combined for all of North Texas' 30 points in the quarter as they outscored the Shockers by 15 in the final 10 minutes.
North Texas struggled to hold onto the ball in the first half, leading to Wichita State's lead. The Mean Green turned the ball over nine times, while shooting 34.6% from the field. A 10-0 run late in the second quarter for Wichita State gave it a 32-24 lead at halftime.
The Shockers continued to build upon that lead to start the third quarter, led by Salese Blow who finished with a game-high 23 points.
However, UNT would shift the momentum of the game with a 9-0 run to start the fourth quarter. With the Shockers' lead cut to two points, the teams traded baskets before UNT took its first lead since the 6:56 mark in the second quarter during a 10-0 run.
With the win, North Texas improved to 13-3 on the season and 3-1 in American Athletic Conference play. The Mean Green also remained undefeated at home with a record of 7-0.
Kernal led the Mean Green on her 23rd birthday 21 points and nine rebounds. Robinson was second in points with 15, while Lampkin added 12 for the night.
UNT will face two crucial road tests in the coming week with SMU up first on Jan. 17 followed by a contest with South Florida on Jan. 20. Wednesday's game in Dallas is set to tip at 7 p.m. CT on ESPN+.
Quoting Head Coach Jason Burton
Thoughts on the game:
"I'm glad we came to play in the fourth quarter. I don't think we came to play to start the game. Our energy was low and we didn't execute. The second half was just different. Our culture won the game, every timeout we went to in the second half they were saying the right things. That led to us having a huge fourth quarter."
The Mean Green faced their second-largest deficit of the season trailing 51-33 with 2:02 left to go in the third quarter. From there, North Texas would outscore Wichita State 39-17 in the program's largest comeback since 2018.
DesiRay Kernal and Dyani Robinson each posted 11 points in the fourth quarter, while Tommisha Lampkin added eight to spur the rally. The trio combined for all of North Texas' 30 points in the quarter as they outscored the Shockers by 15 in the final 10 minutes.
North Texas struggled to hold onto the ball in the first half, leading to Wichita State's lead. The Mean Green turned the ball over nine times, while shooting 34.6% from the field. A 10-0 run late in the second quarter for Wichita State gave it a 32-24 lead at halftime.
The Shockers continued to build upon that lead to start the third quarter, led by Salese Blow who finished with a game-high 23 points.
However, UNT would shift the momentum of the game with a 9-0 run to start the fourth quarter. With the Shockers' lead cut to two points, the teams traded baskets before UNT took its first lead since the 6:56 mark in the second quarter during a 10-0 run.
With the win, North Texas improved to 13-3 on the season and 3-1 in American Athletic Conference play. The Mean Green also remained undefeated at home with a record of 7-0.
Kernal led the Mean Green on her 23rd birthday 21 points and nine rebounds. Robinson was second in points with 15, while Lampkin added 12 for the night.
UNT will face two crucial road tests in the coming week with SMU up first on Jan. 17 followed by a contest with South Florida on Jan. 20. Wednesday's game in Dallas is set to tip at 7 p.m. CT on ESPN+.
Quoting Head Coach Jason Burton
Thoughts on the game:
"I'm glad we came to play in the fourth quarter. I don't think we came to play to start the game. Our energy was low and we didn't execute. The second half was just different. Our culture won the game, every timeout we went to in the second half they were saying the right things. That led to us having a huge fourth quarter."
Team Stats
WSU
UNT
FG%
.400
.475
3FG%
.429
.176
FT%
.579
.722
RB
35
41
TO
17
17
STL
7
4
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
21
FGM
7
3FGM
0
FTM
7
Pts
15
FGM
7
3FGM
1
FTM
0
Pts
12
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Pts
9
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
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