BOX SCORE

Prairie View A&M may have been up by 49 points, but freshman point guard Jeanette Jackson could feel the pressure of her next two free throws. The crowd had been rowdy, pushing for the team to reach or break the 100-point mark. Now it fell silent.

Jackson stepped to the line, went through her routine and knocked down her first free throw. The crowd erupted for a few seconds before quieting back down for the second shot. Jackson nailed it, and the Williams Nicks Building went into a frenzy. The game had long been in hand for the Lady Panthers, but reaching 100 points was something special.

Surpassing 100 points was a personal goal of some of the players in the Lady Panthers' 102-51 win over Arkansas-Pine Bluff Monday night, and they accomplished it with defense and opportunistic scoring.

“We had a mind-set to destroy them,” junior guard Latia Williams said. “We didn't want them to think they had a chance. They were 0-17 and they weren't going to get their first win against us.”

Williams (22 points and 12 rebounds) was one of three players for Prairie View A&M to score over 20 points Monday night. Junior guard JaQuandria Williams scored a career-high 33 points, shooting 14-for-27 from the field while pulling down eight boards. Jeanette Jackson also scored a career-high with 29 points and a career-high eight assists.

It wasn't all about offense for the Lady Panthers. Head coach Toyelle Wilson coached her team into stealing the ball 26 times and forcing UAPB to commit 35 turnovers.

“The girls came out and executed our game plan perfectly,” Wilson said. “The points that we got off of turnovers were crucial too. Everyone contributed in one way or another, and I think it showed in the final score. It was a statement game for us going into Alabama.”

The Lady Panthers shot 51 percent from the field, and held Arkansas-Pine Bluff to 34.6 percent from the floor. Prairie View A&M shot lights out in the first half, going 19-for-31 en route to a 61.3 shooting percentage from the floor and a dominating 60-18 lead.

Latia Williams said that the team needed this momentum heading into a tough road trip to Alabama where it will face Alabama State on Saturday, Jan. 28 and then Alabama A&M on Monday, Jan. 30.  Both Alabama State and Alabama A&M are 3-4 in SWAC.