TULSA, Okla. – The Sam Houston Bearkats held the lead at the half, but a big run by Tulsa in the third quarter opened things up for the Golden Hurricane in a 64-48 win over the Kats on Monday afternoon at the Reynolds Center.
 
Faith Cook led the Kats (1-2) in scoring for the third straight game with 12 points and Courtney Cleveland added 11, but Sam Houston shot just 31 percent from the floor as a team and did not have another player with more than Madelyn Batista's seven points. Batista also picked up 11 rebounds while Damaya Telemaque had four assists.
 
Sam Houston will return home to host USAO on Wednesday at 5:00 p.m. at Johnson Coliseum. The game will be aired on ESPN+ and will be part of a doubleheader with the Bearkat men as they host Missouri State in the nightcap.
 
Tulsa (2-0) sisters Maya and Yvette Mayberry combined for 25 points for the Golden Hurricane, while Tamira Poindexter added 10. Tulsa committed just 15 turnovers while forcing 24 from Sam Houston.
 
The Kats opened up red hot, hitting four of their first six shots from the field to kickstart the game on a 9-0 run; however, Tulsa responded with a 9-2 run of its own and the teams stayed near one another throughout the opening half.
 
Sam Houston used a 7-0 run to close the half, taking a 26-25 lead into the locker room behind 10 points from Cook. But the third quarter was not kind for the Kats as Tulsa put together a 19-2 run in just over four minutes of work to blow the game open.
 
The Golden Hurricane did much of its damage from beyond the arc, hitting a trio of 3-point buckets in that run on their way to eight for the game. They would shoot nearly 77 percent from the field in the stanza, outscoring the Kats 27-8 to take a 54-32 lead into the final period, a total the home team was able to hold up.