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UNT Dallas

Photo Recap vs. Xavier (La.)
56
Xavier (LA) XAVIER ( 3-4, 0-2
58
Winner UNT Dallas UNT DALL 4-2, 3-1
Xavier (LA) XAVIER (
3-4, 0-2
56
Final
58
UNT Dallas UNT DALL
4-2, 3-1
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Xavier (LA) XAVIER ( 16 7 18 15 56
UNT Dallas UNT DALL 15 20 11 12 58

Game Recap: Women's Basketball | | nathanyacovissi

Trailblazers Hold onto Statement RRAC Win Early in Season

CEDAR HILL, Texas – A late defensive stop helped seal a dramatic and impressive 58-56 victory over Xavier University of Louisiana on Thursday night at Trinity Leadership Public School. The Trailblazers claimed a two-point triumph over a conference opponent in the Red River Athletic Conference that was predicted to finish second overall and had a pair of first place votes. UNTD won its third game in the last four – all in the RRAC. The Trailblazers improve to 4-2 on the campaign, while Xavier drops to 3-4 and 0-2 in conference. UNT Dallas matches its best start to a season with 2022-23 season both overall and in a conference. That season the Trailblazers were in the Sooner Athletic Conference and rattled off wins in the opening three-game stretch.
 
After a slow start, the Trailblazers worked their way back into the game and trailed by a point after one quarter,16-15. A 20-7 second quarter had the home team blazing to a double-digit advantage and a 35-23 halftime score.
 
The 17-2 run occurred the last 4:22 minutes for UNT Dallas, as Myles made a fastbreak layup and after a block by Kayden Riley (Dallas, Texas) setup a Myles go-ahead trifecta with 3:47 left. Johnson made two free throws and then a pair of layups by Channing Beauvais (Paradise, Texas) and Sanaa Murphy-Showers (Plano, Texas) capped a string of 11 straight points. Xavier was held without a field goal the final 4:50 minutes and between two free throws with 1:51 left; it was all Trailblazers. Johnson picked a steal that was a fastbreak layup. After the team's leading scorer nailed another jumper, Allysa Pendley (Waco, Texas) ended the big second quarter with a jumper. Abigail Ramos (Irving, Texas) dished the dime. Pendley did have a block earlier in the run that supported a strong defense the kept the Gold Rush to 2-of-13 overall, 0-of-6 from deep, and 3-of-10 from the line.
 
Xavier reduced a 14-point deficit to two points (42-40) in the third quarter with three minutes remaining. Jade Myles (Dallas, Texas) nailed a triple by UNTD to make it a two-possession game and help the team maintain the lead after three quarters.
 
In the final quarter, the Trailblazers were able to strike early and went ahead by eight points. Several bursts by the Gold Nuggets saw the gap close to a point on a few occasions until an even 53-53 score. De'Asia Johnson (Dallas, Texas), who showed why she is a two-time RRAC Player of the Week, started her next case with a go-ahead layup with 1:16 minutes remaining. After both sides came away empty on the next minute of possessions, ShanDrea Yeldell (Dallas, Texas) tickled the twine on two free throws to make it 57-53.
 
A quick inbounds to Xavier's Shania Swan led to an immediate trifecta from deep beyond the arc and a one-point margin. UNTD's Sanaa Murphy-Showers (Plano, Texas) hit the first free throw on two tries for what would be the final score. The Gold Nuggets went for the tying shot on two attempts deep in the paint, but the last shots were offline and the biggest defensive stop of the game occurred at the end the Trailblazers held on to a thrilling victory.
 
Johnson scored a career-high 20 points and was 8-of-13 overall and dropped two three-pointers. She added four steals, which included a couple late during game-changing moments. Johnson also played in 38 minutes.
 
Myles chipped in 12 points and had two other three-pointers. Yeldell notched 9 points and rebounds, while swiping four steals and dishing four assists.
 
The Trailblazers shot 39.3 percent (22-56) with five three-pointers and were 9-for-18 at the free throw line. Xavier (La.) held an edge on points off turnovers (18-13) and second chance points (14-5). The Trailblazers won the battle in the paint (30-24) and held a narrow edge on fastbreak points (8-6).
 
Xavier shot 30 percent (18-60) from the field, made five three-pointers, and were 15-for-31 at the free throw line.
 
Tiarra Tillison led the guests with 19 points, while Swan had 14 points and six rebounds.  
 
UNT Dallas is home on Saturday against North American. Tip-off is at 1:00 p.m.  

 
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