WICHITA - Senior Kiki Stephens scored a season-high 20 points as the wichita State women's basketball team (3-4) came from behind to win its second-straight game, grabbing a 65-61 win over Western Illinois (1-5), Saturday night inside Charles Koch Arena.

Stephens led all players with her eighth career 20-point performance, while Jacie Hoyt recorded nine points and three assists and Kyrie Kinder scored eight to lead the Shockers. Sudbeck led WSU with eight rebounds, and Stephens had a game-high four assists.

For WIU, Gina Hugelier led three Westerwinds in double figure with 13 points, while Katy Davenport added 12 and Stephanie Lovingood had 10 points and a team-high eight rebounds.

The Shockers, who trailed by as many as 10 points in the first half, outscored the Westerwinds 21-12 over the final 8:33 for their third-straight home victory.

The Shockers opened the game ice cold from the field, missing nine of its first 10 shots over the opening six minutes, allowing WIU to start the contest with a 12-5 lead. Kiki Stephens ended a five-minute drought from the field with a jumper that closed the Westerwinds lead to 12-7 with 14:12 left, but a Jordan O'Brien's second three-pointer of the contest extended the Western advantage to 15-7, its largest of the game to that point.

Frannie Vathauer's 3-pointer with just over 12 minutes left cut the deficit to 15-10, but Western answered with a 7-2 run to take a 22-12 lead with just under 10 minutes left following a pair of Davenport free throws.

A Jacie Hoyt 3-pointer with 6:25 left brought the Shockers to within one, and Stephens' turnaround jumper 30 seconds later gave the Shockers a 24-23 lead, their first since the opening minutes, capping a 12-1 WSU run. WIU answered with a Davenport 3-pointer to cap a 5-0 mini run to take a 28-24 lead, maintaining that advantage to the break, 37-29 thanks to a Hugelier steal and layup under the Shocker basket as time expired.

Western shot 50 percent from the field in the first half, includinig a 6-for-12 mark from long-range. WSU recovered from the slow start to finish the half shooting 35 percent, with a 4-for-6 effort at the free-throw line. WIU's bench was the story of the first, including Hugelier's eight first half points, as Western's bench held a 17-8 advantage in scoring at the break.

The Shockers answered the bell in a big way to start the second, opening the frame on a 7-2 run, capped by a Hoyt 3-pointer that closed the deficit to three, 39-36, with 18:13 left to play in the contest. WIU answered with a 5-0 run of its own before a Hoyt putback and a Stephens layin cut the deficit to 44-40 with just less than 14 minutes left.

It was as close as WSU could get until a Hoyt free throw with 8:21 left brought the Shockers to within three at 50-47. Stephens then scored three-straight to tie the game, 50-50 with 7:30 left in the contest.

WSU did not wait long after to claim its first lead of the second as a Daria Fazier layin with seven minutes left gave the Shockers a 52-50 advantage and Kinder's 3-pointer 30 seconds later extended Wichita State's lead to 55-52, tying its biggest lead of the contest to that point, capping an 11-2 run over a span of just more than two minutes.

A three-point play by freshman Samantha Smith gave WSU a 58-53 lead with just under five minutes left to play before a Kinder 3-pointer put the Shockers up by six with less than three minutes in the game, 61-55.

WIU's Stephanie Lovingood responded with four-straight points to close the Shocker advantage to 61-59. Frazier fouled out with 2:13 left on an offensive foul, leaving WSU's bench a player short of the final two minutes, but Western couldn't capitalize, as Stephens' 18th point of the night came at the top of the key as the shot clock was winding down, giving WSU a 63-59 lead.

WIU's O'Brien connected on a jumper with just over a minute left to cut the WSU lead to 63-61, but Stephens responded yet again, sinking a 12-footer from the baseline to secure the Shockers' second-straight win.

The Shockers will be back in action Tuesday night in Stillwater, Okla., when they take on Oklahoma State. The game is scheduled to tipoff at 7 p.m.

- Wichita State -