Lady Tigers stun New Mexico State with historic fourth-quarter performance

EL PASO, Texas – The Lady Tigers of Texas Southern University turned in a historically dominant fourth-quarter performance Friday en route to a 66-50 win over New Mexico State at the UTEP Thanksgiving Classic.
 
At UTEP's Don Haskins Center, the Lady Tigers outscored their opponents 32-4 in the final period to stun the Aggies and their fans less than 50 miles from the New Mexico State campus and claim TSU's first win of the 2017-18 season.
 
TSU junior Joyce Kennerson scored a game-high 28 points while senior Kaitlyn Palmer poured in 25 points as the Lady Tigers improved their record to 1-3. Brooke Salas scored 23 points to lead the Aggies (2-3) in a losing effort.
 
The 32 points scored by the Lady Tigers in the fourth quarter was the highest single-period total in team history since women's college basketball games were divided into 10-minute quarters in time for the 2015-16 season.
 
The Lady Tigers shot 75 percent (9 of 12) from the field in the final period. Kennerson scored 16 of her 28 points in the last 10 minutes, going 4-for-4 from the field, and making eight out of nine free throw attempts.
 
Kennerson also climbed two more spots to 12th on TSU's all-time scoring list, moving past Cheryl Hughes (944, 1978-82) and Marilyn Langellier (947, 1992-96). She is only 13 points away from moving into ninth all-time, going past Shelia Pena (966, 1995-99), Doretha Long (968, 1985-89), and Roberta Harper (977, 1978-82).
 
Palmer, meanwhile, was 5-of-5 from 3-point range during the game. The Haskins Center was where Palmer made her TSU debut last season with an 8-of-16 showing from the 3-point arc; she has made 62 percent of long-range shots in El Paso.
 
After the teams exchanged baskets in the opening two minutes of the minute, the Lady Tigers scored 12 unanswered points between the 8:05 and 3:13 marks of the quarter to take a 50-48 lead. After Salas broke the Aggie drought with a layup, TSU finished by scoring the final 16 points of the contest.
 
Isis Lane made her second consecutive (and second career) start and recorded collegiate highs of seven points and seven rebounds.
 
The Lady Tigers return to action Saturday when they face the host UTEP Miners. Tipoff is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. Mountain Standard Time.