Box Score KINGSVILLE, TEXAS – UT Tyler women's basketball got a heavy dose of
Tina Machalova,
Destini Whitehead, and
Ella Bradley on the offensive end as the trio combined to lead the Patriots over Texas A&M-Kingsville by a final score of 58-50 on Thursday night.
That trio alone combined for 51 of the 58 Patriots points and 20-for-35 shooting while combining to knock down all five Patriots three pointers on the night.
It took over two minutes for either side to get on the board with their first points, but the two teams battled furiously to a first quarter score of 17-17.
Destini Whitehead got her scoring started early, as she scored eight points in the first quarter followed by five from Bradley and four from Machalova.
In the second quarter, both defenses settled in, with neither side shooting better than 31% for the period. A 6-2 run from the Patriots in the middle of the period gave them a three point advantage with 5:26 remaining in the half. From the 6:26 mark of the quarter until the 1:33 mark of the quarter, the Patriots held the Javelinas scoreless, but a 5-0 finish from Texas A&M-Kingsville gave them a two point halftime lead.
To begin the second half, the Patriots came out with a flourish, running on a 10-0 run over just 1:27 of game time on their way to an eight point advantage. In that run, Machalova would score the first five points and went on to assist
Montse Gutierrez to round out the scoring. The Javelinas would not be deterred, responding with their own 13-0 run to retake the lead. Over the last three minutes of the period however, Machalova showed up big again, dropping in six points while Whitehead added two more as part of an 8-2 run that saw the Patriots take a slim one point advantage into the final quarter.
That scoring tear continued into the fourth, as the Patriots ran out on a 9-2 run that saw seven more points from Machalova and another pair from Bradley as the Patriots went 3-for-5 from the floor and knocked in all three free throws. That run coincided with the Patriots defense putting together a dominant effort that allowed no Javelinas buckets for nearly five minutes of gametime as they went 0-for-5 from the floor and gave up three turnovers.
In the final minutes of action, the Patriots would go 2-for-2 from the floor and make two of their four free throw attempts while holding the Javelinas scoreless over their last four attempts from the field on their way to the win.
Tina Machalova led all scorers with 23 points, as she went 9-for-16 from the floor while also picking up a game-high nine rebounds.
Destini Whitehead chipped in 16 points on 7-for-12 shooting while adding two rebounds and a pair of three pointers.
Ella Bradley scored 12 points on 4-for-7 shooting while knocking in four of her five free throw attempts. She also added in six rebounds and two assists.
Next up for UT Tyler will be a matchup with #25 Texas A&M International on Saturday afternoon. That game is scheduled to begin at 1 p.m. in Laredo, Texas.
