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Sunday, Jan. 23 3:00pm ET
Lennox made 13-of-21 shots | |||||
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BOX SCORE
BOWLING GREEN, Ky. (AP) -- Louisiana Tech coach Leon Barmore knows that Betty Lennox can be deadly when she's patient. Lennox had no trouble killing off any chances of her team being upset Sunday, matching a career-high with 31 points as the third-ranked Lady Techsters beat Western Kentucky 85-61. Lennox made 13-of-21 shots, including 4-of-8 3-pointers, and added seven assists, six steals and five rebounds as Louisiana Tech (13-2, 4-0 Sun Belt Conference) won its third straight since a 90-63 loss at No. 1 Connecticut on Jan. 2. "Lennox played under control and was outstanding, which was pretty obvious by her shooting percentage," Barmore said. "She waited for her shots and when they came to her, she took them. When Betty's hitting like she is, you have to let her go." Ayana Walker added 16 points and 12 rebounds and Tamicha Jackson added 12 points for Louisiana Tech, which won its 29th straight conference game. "We know Lennox and Jackson can score," Barmore said. "But right now, we're working on more of a team game because if you're going to beat Connecticut, you better have five or six or seven that can get you some points. "(Walker) had 16 tonight, and that's what we're looking to start getting from the rest of the team." ShaRae Mansfield recorded her conference-best 10th double-double of the season with 17 points and a season-high 17 rebounds for Western Kentucky (10-7, 4-2), which had its winning streak halted at five games. Natalie Powers had a career-high 17 points and Jamie Walz added 15 for the Lady Toppers. "I don't think this was a performance indicative of the way we've been playing," said Western Kentucky coach Steve Small. "Louisiana Tech is a great team with a lot of weapons that probably will make a run for the national championship. "But we didn't do what we needed to do tonight to find out if we could beat them. We played flat on our heels and just didn't do it." The Lady Techsters opened the game with a 14-2 run, then never let Western Kentucky within six points the rest of the game. The Lady Toppers made only one of their first 11 shots and committed five early turnovers. Trailing 18-7, Mansfield scored five straight points, cutting the margin to six. But the Lady Toppers would get no closer as another 14-2 run, capped by a Lennox 3-pointer, gave Louisiana Tech a 32-14 lead. Western Kentucky made only eight of 33 shots (24 percent) and committed 15 turnovers in the first half, while Louisiana Tech hit 16 of 34 (47 percent) en route to a 39-20 halftime lead. Louisiana Tech took its largest lead of the game, 71-46, on a Lennox 3-pointer with 10 minutes to play. "Once we got down, I think we kind of hung our heads and let ourselves get taken out of the game," Powers said. "We started thinking, 'Can we come back?' "You really can't think like that. There's always a point when you can turn the game around." | ALSO SEE Womens College Basketball Scoreboard
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