ABILENE – Tarleton continues to show they aren’t packing it in on 2022-23, storming back from down 18 at Abilene Christian to take the lead in the fourth quarter. But a big Wildcat fourth quarter run dropped the Texans for the ninth straight time, 78-60 the final on Thursday night in Abilene.
The Texans (7-18, 1-13 WAC) shot lights out in the second and third quarters at Moody Coliseum, combining for 13-of-20 (.650) from the field, including 5-of-8 (.625) from three-point range. Once down by 18 points in the second quarter, the Texans chipped away and even took the lead after the first possession in the fourth quarter, 54-52. ACU (12-13, 6-8 WAC) responded with a 20-0 run, winning the final frame 26-9.
The Wildcats clinched their WAC Tournament berth with the win.
Tarleton’s Jenna Dick continued her hot shooting of late, draining 4-of-5 from downtown, including three straight threes in the span of 70 seconds. She finished with a team-high 18 points (5-8 FG, 4-4 FT), adding three rebounds off the bench.
Tyler Jackson continued her impressive play when facing ACU with 14 points (5-12 FG) and five rebounds, playing all 40 minutes. In her four times taking on the Wildcats, she has scored 10+ points in each game.
Mayra Caicedo just missed out on a double-double once again, recording 10 points, nine assists and six rebounds. Over her last two games, she’s averaged 10.0 assists and 7.5 rebounds.
The Texans had a respectable day shooting the ball at 45.2/42.9/76.2 splits, but so did ACU, shooting 49.1/47.8/57.9. The Wildcats also outrebounded the Texans 35-25 and scored 27 points off of 18 turnovers.
ACU had the strong start, racing to a 10-2 lead that built to 21-6 at the 1:10 mark in the first quarter. ACU won the opening frame 21-8 upon shooting 8-of-13 (.615) from the field.
The Wildcat lead grew to 18 at 28-10, but Tarleton kept at it, getting closer and closer as the second quarter wore on. By halftime, the Texans were within seven, 41-34, thanks to an 8-of-12 (.667) clip from the field, 4-of-5 (.800) from distance and 6-of-7 (.857) from the stripe.
The wearing down continued for Tarleton in the third quarter as their defense ramped up, forcing the Wildcats to shoot just 3-of-16 (.188) in the frame to take it 17-11 and trail by just a point at the end, 52-51.
Dick opened the fourth were her fourth trey to give Tarleton their first lead at 54-52. ACU followed with back-to-back-to-back three-pointers over the span of 60 seconds, then hit free throws and layups to conclude a 20-0 run in just four minutes of game action.
Tarleton is two wins back of the final WAC Tournament spot with four games left to play. The Texans will look to make up ground on Saturday at Sam Houston in Huntsville, Texas, at 2 p.m. CT.
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