Sunday, January 28
Denton, TX
2:00 PM CT
University of North Texas
17-3,7-1AAC
87
vs
72
UAB
15-5,6-2AAC
1
2
3
4
F
UAB
17
13
18
24
72
North Texas
14
26
25
22
87
Kernal’s 28 Points Leads Women’s Basketball to 87-72 Win Over UAB
1/28/2024 5:37:00 PM | Women's Basketball
The teams entered Sunday’s game tied for the conference lead
DENTON, Texas – The UNT women's basketball team took over sole possession of first place in the American Athletic Conference with its 87-72 victory over UAB inside The Super Pit Sunday afternoon.
Behind DesiRay Kernal's 28 points, the Mean Green won their seventh-consecutive conference game, tying the 1998-99 and 1999-2000 teams for the longest conference winning streak in program history. The victory also improved North Texas to 17-3 overall on the season, making Jason Burton the winningest first-year head coach in program history as he moved past UNT Hall of Famer, Tina Slinker, who had 16 wins in her first season.
Kernal had her way against the UAB defense, scoring 20 of her 28 points in the first half, including 14 in the second quarter alone that outscored UAB's 13 points for the entire quarter. Behind Kernal who went 6-of-7 from the field, UNT posted its highest-shooting percentage in a quarter this season at 84.6% and took control of the game as it doubled up UAB, 26-13 in the quarter to take a 40-30 lead into halftime.
A 10-2 run to open the second half put North Texas further ahead and gave them a comfortable lead for the remainder of the game. Even with Kernal on the bench for the majority of the third quarter after picking up two quick fouls, the Mean Green continued to dominate the Blazers' defense in the paint. Tommisha Lampkin finished with 19 points and seven rebounds, while the Mean Green collectively racked up 50 points in the paint. Dyani Robinson also had 18 points of her own for the game.
A dangerous UAB offense that was second in the conference in scoring entering the game began to catch its stride in the fourth quarter. Although the Blazers put up 24 points in the final quarter, Kernal and Lampkin kept UNT's lead safe as they combined for 16 points to seal the game.
Kernal's final bucket of the game tied a career-high that she set earlier this season against Arkansas-Pine Bluff.
UAB's two star guards were held in check for the majority of the day by the Mean Green. Mia Moore had 15 points matching her season average, but entered the game averaging 9.9 rebounds and was held to just five on Sunday, while Denim DeShields had 15 points on 6-of-21 shooting after averaging 18 points per game on 47.5% shooting in the Blazers' first seven games of conference play.
UNT will look to set a new program record for consecutive conference wins in its next game against UTSA on Wednesday. The Mean Green and Roadrunners are set to tip off at 6:30 p.m. CT from the Convocation Center in San Antonio.
Quoting Head Coach Jason Burton
On the emphasis of scoring in the paint against UAB:
"I felt like the game was going to come down like whose style of play was executed better. They were going to play on the perimeter, and we were going to play inside. We hoped to be able to get some people in foul trouble, which we did, and we played efficiently. We got the ball exactly where we wanted to get it and got great looks."
Behind DesiRay Kernal's 28 points, the Mean Green won their seventh-consecutive conference game, tying the 1998-99 and 1999-2000 teams for the longest conference winning streak in program history. The victory also improved North Texas to 17-3 overall on the season, making Jason Burton the winningest first-year head coach in program history as he moved past UNT Hall of Famer, Tina Slinker, who had 16 wins in her first season.
Kernal had her way against the UAB defense, scoring 20 of her 28 points in the first half, including 14 in the second quarter alone that outscored UAB's 13 points for the entire quarter. Behind Kernal who went 6-of-7 from the field, UNT posted its highest-shooting percentage in a quarter this season at 84.6% and took control of the game as it doubled up UAB, 26-13 in the quarter to take a 40-30 lead into halftime.
A 10-2 run to open the second half put North Texas further ahead and gave them a comfortable lead for the remainder of the game. Even with Kernal on the bench for the majority of the third quarter after picking up two quick fouls, the Mean Green continued to dominate the Blazers' defense in the paint. Tommisha Lampkin finished with 19 points and seven rebounds, while the Mean Green collectively racked up 50 points in the paint. Dyani Robinson also had 18 points of her own for the game.
A dangerous UAB offense that was second in the conference in scoring entering the game began to catch its stride in the fourth quarter. Although the Blazers put up 24 points in the final quarter, Kernal and Lampkin kept UNT's lead safe as they combined for 16 points to seal the game.
Kernal's final bucket of the game tied a career-high that she set earlier this season against Arkansas-Pine Bluff.
UAB's two star guards were held in check for the majority of the day by the Mean Green. Mia Moore had 15 points matching her season average, but entered the game averaging 9.9 rebounds and was held to just five on Sunday, while Denim DeShields had 15 points on 6-of-21 shooting after averaging 18 points per game on 47.5% shooting in the Blazers' first seven games of conference play.
UNT will look to set a new program record for consecutive conference wins in its next game against UTSA on Wednesday. The Mean Green and Roadrunners are set to tip off at 6:30 p.m. CT from the Convocation Center in San Antonio.
Quoting Head Coach Jason Burton
On the emphasis of scoring in the paint against UAB:
"I felt like the game was going to come down like whose style of play was executed better. They were going to play on the perimeter, and we were going to play inside. We hoped to be able to get some people in foul trouble, which we did, and we played efficiently. We got the ball exactly where we wanted to get it and got great looks."
Team Stats
UAB
UNT
FG%
.388
.561
3FG%
.276
.333
FT%
.750
.833
RB
36
33
TO
18
18
STL
13
9
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
28
FGM
12
3FGM
0
FTM
4
Pts
19
FGM
6
3FGM
0
FTM
7
Pts
18
FGM
5
3FGM
2
FTM
6
Pts
6
FGM
3
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
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