MARSHALL, Texas – In establishing themselves as one of the premier NAIA teams in Texas, the Wiley College Lady Wildcats may have inadvertently made scheduling future non-conference opponents a bit more challenging. The NAIA’s No. 22-ranked Wildcats defeated an NCAA Division I opponent for the second consecutive season, claiming an 83-71 win Saturday over the visiting Cardinals of Incarnate Word. At Wiley’s Alumni Gymnasium, senior guard Kyniddia Purdy (Beaumont, Texas/Central) scored a game-high 20 points to lead three Lady Wildcats scoring in double-figures and help lead the ‘Cats to their fifth consecutive victory. Kirbi Clark (Houston, Texas/Tyler JC) turned in a double-double performance for the Wildcats, scoring 15 points and pulling in a game-high 16 rebounds. Keaira Arion (Beaumont, Texas/Tyler JC) added 14 points and four steals for Wiley. Ifunanya Mora scored 18 points and grabbed 14 rebounds to lead the Cardinals, who were handed their first loss of the season. Rose Whitehead came off the bench to score 17 points for the Cardinals (5-1). The Lady Wildcats handed a Southland Conference opponent a loss for the second time in as many seasons, having defeated Stephen F. Austin last year in Nacogdoches in a game that counted only as an exhibition for Wiley. (NCAA programs are not permitted to schedule exhibitions against NAIA opponents.) Incarnate Word began NCAA Division I play this season as a member program of the Southland Conference after moving up from Division II and the Lone Star Conference. Wiley College trailed by as many as seven points with 11:51 remaining in the first half, and had to overcome shooting woes and an imbalanced foul count during the game. The Lady Wildcats were whistled for 31 fouls in the contest compared to Incarnate Word’s 16, a ratio of nearly 2-to-1. The up-tempo game that the Lady Wildcats preferred played right into their favor Saturday, as Incarnate Word only suited up eight players for the contest. Wiley College outscored the Cardinals 20-0 in fast-break points, and 56-28 in the paint. The Lady Wildcats used a 6-0 run between the 5:54 and 3:02 marks of the first half to claim a 35-33 lead; Wiley College did not trail for the rest of the game. Bianca Davis (Cecilia, La./Louisiana-Lafayette) and Danisha Shaw (Kenner, La./Paris JC) added seven points apiece for the Lady Wildcats. Wiley College returns to action this weekend when they travel to Memphis to take part in the Memphis HBCU Hoops Classic at Southwest Tennessee Community College. The ‘Cats are scheduled to face Philander Smith College at 2 p.m. Saturday.
Posted on: Sat, 23 Nov 2013 22:00:35 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015