DENTON, TEXAS – UT Tyler women's basketball put together one of their best performances of the season on Friday as they beat #3 seed Regis 74-54 in the first round of the NCAA South Central Regional Tournament.
 
For the contest, the Patriots shot 41% from the floor and a scorching 41% from beyond the arc. They held the Rangers to just 27% shooting and 28% from beyond the arc as the Patriots put together tremendous efforts on both sides of the ball.
 
After a sluggish start from both teams that featured just two points over the first 2:49 of the game time, the Patriots kicked their offense into high gear with a 13-3 run that featured four points from Meagan Mendazona and five points from Tina Machalova.
 
In the final 1:23 of the first, the Patriots again found their stride, going on an 8-3 run that featured six more points from Machalova as they took a dominant 21-12 lead into the second frame.
 
The second frame of the night saw the two teams get defensive, as they totaled just 21 points over the 10 minutes. The Patriots flexed their defensive muscles, holding Regis to just 17.6% shooting in the quarter.

The big run came right in the middle of the period, as Brooklyn Palmer drilled a triple and Ella Bradley dropped in a layup right in front of another Machalova three pointer to put the Patriots up big.
 
A three pointer from Mendazona got the third quarter started for the Patriots on the right foot, putting them ahead by 16. However, the Rangers had a big run in their pocket, going on a 15-4 run to crawl all the way to within five points with 5:05 left in the period.
 
With 3:54 left in the frame, the Patriots answered back, as Gabby Elliott dropped in two layups on back to back possessions to start an 11-5 run to close out the quarter, bookmarked by a Machalova triple to put the Patriots up 11 heading into the fourth.
 
Regis brought the heat early with two three pointers, but Machalova and Gutierrez answered with their own three pointers to hold them off. Polina Latysheva tacked on to the run with a jumper, and a Regis layup finally snapped a 3:26 scoreless drought with 5:40 to go.
 
From there on out, it was all Patriots on both sides. They held the Rangers without a field goal until the 36 second mark of the quarter, while Gutierrez and Machalova continued to fill up the basket with clutch three pointers.
 
Down the stretch, Frances King converted the free throws necessary to complete the win, as the Patriots pulled away to a 74-54 final score.
 
Tina Machalova led all scorers with 26 points on 8-for-16 shooting. She made seven three pointers and tacked on eight rebounds.
 
Meagan Mendazona added in 11 points, six rebounds, and four assists.
 
Brooklyn Palmer led the way with 11 rebounds, including several clutch defensive boards down the stretch. Frances King led the way with seven assists while also chipping in seven points.
 
UT Tyler will now await the winner of #2 seed Colorado Mesa and #7 seed Lubbock Christian. That contest will take place at 5 p.m. on Saturday evening.