HSU Cowgirls clear the bench in big hoops win over Howard Payne

Hardin-Simmons was 16 for 18 on Saturday at the Mabee Complex.

The Cowgirls basketball team won its 18th game of the season, getting all 18 players suited up into the game.

Sixteen scored in a 95-53 rout of Howard Payne, which, coincidentally, lost its 18th game.

"That was a lot of fun," HSU coach Kendra Whitehead said of clearing the bench. "Most all of them scored and we tried to get touches for a couple of them that hadn't scored. It was fun to see them have success. They work just as hard as everyone else. The don't always get the payoff of getting the minutes.

"So to pay them back with some time on the court today was great."

Good to be back at Mabee

HSU, ranked No. 13 nationally, won its 15th straight game and improved to 13-0 in American Southwest Conference play.

With four games to play, the Cowgirls are in a position to run the table, something HSU hasn't done since 2003 - when Whitehead was playing.

What is most important, however, is securing the top seed to host the the ASC championship tournament.

While HSU now stands 18-2 overall, Howard Payne fell to 2-18. HPU has not won a conference game and quickly was out of Saturday's contest. Mixing starters with those first off the bench, the Cowgirls built a whopping 56-17 lead by halftime.

The 95 points is a season high, topping the 90 that HSU scored Thursday in Alpine against Sul Ross. But in that game, the Cowgirls needed a 3-point shot to fall in the final seconds to win and keep their streak alive.

Making the more than 300-mile trip back to Abilene, Whitehead was anxious to see how her team would start Saturday. Her team has played well since losing back-to-back games to Trinity in late November. Trinity is ranked No. 1 in one national poll and is unbeaten in 19 games.

HSU, the coach said, has not played its best on the Saturday after recent tough road games. But playing before a good crowd and at home was energizing, she said.

"Honestly, I think the biggest thing is that we were playing at home," Whitehead said. "We have had three really intense Thursday games over the course of the last three week and we've seen some lag in our Saturday games starting out. So we talked about that quite a bit at practice yesterday. We want to have energy and intensity.

"I think just the fact that we were on our home court really helped with that. I was glad to see them come out really strong."

She had nothing to worry about this Saturday. The Cowgirls raced to a 27-7 first-quarter lead and led by 39 at halftime, even as subs entered the game late in the first half.

The starters and most second-teamers played only sparingly in the second half.

Freshman point guard K.K. Robertson, who dazzled at Abilene High, scored nine points, knocking down a 3-pointer.

OK, so the three-pointer was hard to get

The only thing not working for HSU was hitting three-pointers.

Robertson was the only player to do so in the second as HSU went 1-for-12. For the game, the Cowgirls were 7-for-28 - just 25%.

But with everything else working, including a 46-16 advantage in the paint, Hardin-Simmons could look past an off-day beyond the arc.

Howard Payne, meanwhile, was 7 of 14 in 3-pointers and outscored HSU 25-22 in the third quarter as Caitlyn Ward got all 12 of her points in the game. Teammate Anna Beamesderfer had 11 in the contest.

HSU was led by Natasha Blizzard's 14 points. She hit all five shots from the field and was 4-of-5 from the line, playing less than 15 minutes. Aiken Semones had 12 and She'Ray Wilson 10 for HSU.

Back on the road

The Cowgirls bolted to a 10-1 lead but Howard Payne cut that to 12-7 on a Beamesderfer trey.

HPU, however, would not score again until almost a minute was played in the second quarter and Hardin-Simmons led 29-7. Asia Mitchell sank a layup to end her team's scoring drought.

HSU was up 52-13 when Whitehead brought in five fresh players off the bench to finish that last two or so minutes of the first half. That group, and others, got more playing time in the second half.

There was time to hit a 100, but Whitehead pulled her players back.

"People talk about peaking. We never want to peak. We always want to keep the trajectory going up, and I do think we're doing that," she said. "Our offense, in particular, is doing that. We're scoring more points right now than we were earlier in the season. It has been starting to click at that end of the court."

The work now is on defense, Whitehead said, though she said HSU opponents are playing well at home.

"You have to battle through those things," she said.

Hardin-Simmons goes back on the road, next playing at Ozarks and UT Dallas, teams that the Cowgirls beat handily at Mabee. Then comes a rematch with McMurry at Kimbrell Arena on Feb. 11 before the season finale Feb. 16 against Mary Hardin-Baylor back at Mabee.

American Southwest Conference women

No 13 Hardin-Simmons 95, Howard Payne 53

Howard Payne … 7 … 10 … 25 … 11 – 53

Hardin-Simmons… 27 … 28 … 22 … 18 -- 95

Howard Payne (2-18, 0-13) – Caitlyn Ward 4 2-3 12, Bria Neal 2 0-0 4, Trynadee Greenwell 3 1-3 9, Asia Mitchell 2 2-2 6, Anna Beamesderfer 3 2-2 11, Brenna Welsh 2 1-1 6, Tallyah Bess 1 0-0 2, Reina Flores 1 0-0 3, . Totals 18 8-12 56

Hardin-Simmons (18-2, 13-0) – Parris Palmer 1 0-0 2, Natasha Blizzard 5 4-5 14, Paris Kiser 2 3-6 7, Hallie Edmondson 1 2-2 4, Samantha Tatum 2 0-0 4, Kylie Ellsworth 2 3-4 7, Kiki Gonzales 4 1-1 9, She'Ray Wilson 3 2-2 10, Morgan Travis 1 0-0 2, Mikayla Ross 2 0-0 4, K.K. Robertson 3 2-3 9, Brylee Smith 1 2-2 4, Katie Hale1 0-0 2, Sayler Breerwinkle 0 0-0 0, Bailie Deaver 0 0-0 0, Angelene Sacco 1 0-0 2, Kennedy Green 1 0-0 2. Totals 34 20-27 95.

3-Point Goals – Howard Payne 9-22 (Ward 2, Greenwell 2, Beamsderfer 3, Welsh, Flores), HSU 7 (Tatum, Semones 3, Wilson 2, Robertson). Total Fouls – Howard Payne 20, HSU 14. Fouled Out – None. Technical Fouls – None.

This article originally appeared on Abilene Reporter-News: HSU Cowgirls clear the bench in big hoops win over Howard Payne