CHICKASHA, Okla. – Up by just three after three quarters, Wayland Baptist scored seven straight points early in the fourth period, and the fifth-ranked Flying Queens – behind 23 point from
Jenna Cooper and 22 from
Kaylee Edgemon – won their 16
th consecutive game Thursday night over University of Science & Arts of Oklahoma, 78-66.
Wayland (20-2, 12-1 Sooner Athletic Conference) led by 10, 28-18, late in the first quarter, but the Drovers (14-8, 8-5) cut it to 1 just before halftime. A 3-pointer by
Kambrey Blakey made it 39-35 at the break.
USAO gained the upperhand by four, 49-45, midway through the third. Three free throws by Blakey shortly after that put Wayland up for good, although it took a little work to pull away.
Up 58-55 going into the fourth, Edgemon hit a 3-pointer to open final-period scoring. A bucket by Brown, another 3 by Blakey, then a 2-pointer by Edgemon made it a 68-57 game. The closest the Drovers came after that was eight, but Brown nailed a 3 to regain the comfortable cushion with 2 ½ minutes to go.
In addition to her game-high 23 points, Cooper pulled down a dozen rebounds for her sixth double-double of the season and second in three games. Edgemon's 22 points were one off the season-high she posted Saturday against SAGU. And, it marked the third straight outing for Edgemon to score 22 or 23 points and was her 16
th consecutive game in double-figures.
Blakey finished with 15 points, hitting all three of her 3s, while Brown got nine points. Wayland's bench outscored USAO's, 37-7.
Morgan Bennett dished out seven assists to add to her program record for most career dish-outs. Brown got six helpers.
Both teams shot 44 percent from the field. Wayland, which defeated USAO 98-64 on Jan. 11 in Plainview, hit 9-of-28 (32 percent) from 3-point range, compared to 6-of-16 (38 percent) for USAO, which got 18 points from Khady Sene and 16 from Milagros Carrera. The Flying Queens outscored the Drovers from the foul line, 11-6.
WBU owned a 39-28 rebounding edge.
The Flying Queens return to action at 2 p.m. Saturday in Oklahoma City against third-place Mid-America Christian (17-6, 9-4). Ranked the equivalent of 34
th in the NAIA, the Evangels have won three straight – including 99-50 on Thursday over Oklahoma-Panhandle State – since falling to USAO, 75-71, and No. 2 Oklahoma City (82-64). Wayland defeated MACU when the teams met Jan. 9 in Plainview, 93-71.
