BROWNWOOD - McMurry missed 21 consecutive shots in the first half and Howard Payne took a choking 34-10 halftime lead from which McMurry couldn't recover. The No. 2-ranked Lady Yellow Jackets held on for a 58-46 victory over No. 6-ranked McMurry Thursday night at Brownwood Coliseum.
Tarra Richardson hit her first two buckets and Amber Horton made a layup to make the score 9-8 in favor of HPU with 14:56 remaining. However, from there, McMurry missed every shot it took for the remainder of the second half and the Lady Yellow Jackets closed the first half with a 25-2 run.
Stacey Blalock led all scorers with 21 points for Howard Payne. The senior from Magnolia was 8 of 14 from the field and had eight rebounds. Her teammates Katy Sarem and Meia Daniels helped with 10 points apiece.
Richardson recorded her fourth consecutive double-double and the fifth in her last six games. She finished with 12 points and 15 boards. Maigen Sawyer scored eight in the losing effort for McMurry.
The win for Howard Payne not only snaps McMurry's 14-game win streak but it solidified the Lady Yellow Jackets' position atop the American Southwest Conference West Division. HPU improved to 18-0 and 13-0 in league play while McMurry fell to 16-2 and 12-1 in the ASC.
In the second half, McMurry outscored the Lady Yellow Jackets 36-24; the visitors moved to a full-court press that caused turnovers and allowed McMurry to cut the deficit. Turnovers were a struggle for both squads as HPU finished with 28 and McMurry finished with 20.
After an 11 percent shooting effort in the first half, McMurry rebounded for a 43 percent showing in the second half. However, the team finished at 29.7 percent for the game while HPU was able to post a 41 percent mark for the contest.
Howard Payne has a three-game win streak over McMurry at Brownwood Coliseum after Thursday night's win. The Lady Yellow Jackets are 8-2 in the two teams' last 10 meetings.
McMurry will try to start a new win streak Saturday in Alpine against Sul Ross State. Tip off is scheduled for 1 p.m. and McMurry will look to make it seven-straight wins over the Lady Lobos.
