Arlington, Tex. - Chanice Smith scored 23 points and Khamra Echols and Britni Martin added 15 and 10 points, respectively, to lead the Sam Houston women to a 67-53 Southland Conference victory over UT-Arlington at Texas Hall Wednesday night.
Sam Houston (8-8, SLC 2-0) led from buzzer to buzzer as the Bearkats jumped out to a 6-0 lead and eventually led by as many as 19 points late in the second half.
UT-Arlington (4-10, SLC 1-1) was led by Tamara Simmons with 18 points. Shalyn Martin added 11 points.
The Bearkats dominated in the paint, out-scoring the Mavericks under the basket 28-16 with 14 points off put-backs from 17 offensive rebounds.
Sam Houston out-boarded the Mavericks 38-36 with Sequeena Thomas leading both teams with 11 rebounds. Martin pulled down eight boards and Echols added five.
The Bearkats defense forced 27 UTA turnovers, turning those miscues into 27 points.
The victory marked the second time in the past three seasons for the Sam Houston women to open Southland Conference action with back-to-back victories.
Sam Houston will attempt to continue its winning streak with another road trip to Thibodaux, La., to face Nicholls Saturday afternoon.
