HUNTSVILLE — Sam Houston closed out the regular season with a 70-64 loss to New Mexico State at Johnson Coliseum on Thursday.
Sam Houston (12-16 overall, 8-10 WAC) led by 10 to start the third quarter when
Sydnee Kemp buried a 3-pointer. The Aggies were eventually able to cut the lead to 53-49 at the end of the period.
Things got tighter in the fourth.
New Mexico State hit a 3 to make it a one-point game at 59-58 with just under six minutes remaining in the game. The Aggies took the lead at 62-59, but
Chyna Allen tied it again when she drilled a 3 from the top of the arc with 2:17 to go.
Sam Houston never regained the lead as New Mexico State held on for the win.
Allen led the way with 22 points, and
Madelyn Batista notched another double-double with 14 points and 12 rebounds.
Mikayla Woods added 12 points and Kemp finished with six.
The game was back and forth for most of the first half, but the Bearkats finally started to gain some momentum midway through the second quarter.
With the contest tied at 19, Allen scored on a layup and converted an old-fashioned three-point play after she was fouled. Sam Houston increased the lead to 28-21 when Kemp knocked down a 3-pointer and Allen hit a jumper with 3:42 to go in the first half.
The Kats led by as many as nine and went into the break on top 32-25 after
Kaylee Jefferson ended a 4-0 run by the Aggies.
Sam Houston will travel to Las Vegas to take part in the WAC Tournament on Monday.
