WICHITA, Kan. – Wichita State trailed by 17 at halftime, but held North Texas to 12 second half points to complete a 57-53 come-from-behind win over the Mean Green Saturday afternoon in Charles Koch Arena.
Wichita State (3-1) looked like two completely different teams in the two halves. After allowing 41 first half points, a season high, Wichita State went to a trapping zone defense. That defense held North Texas to 4-of-27 from the field and just 12 points after halftime.
The 17-point comeback is the largest of the
Keitha Adams era, besting a 16-point comeback on Jan. 15, 2020 vs. Tulsa.
Jane Asinde scored 10 of her team-high 13 points after halftime to lead the charge.
Curtessia Dean added 12 points and
Trajata Colbert grabbed 11 rebounds.
Shamaryah Duncan was a key figure in the second half, scoring all nine of her points after halftime, including five big ones to start the final quarter.
The Shockers finished the game shooting 40 percent from the field and outrebounded North Texas by 13 - 14 on the offensive end.
After scoring 25 first half points, Quincy Noble was limited to just five in the second half. She scored 30 of the 53 points for the Mean Green.
Wichita State jumped out to an early 11-5 lead in the opening minutes behind five quick
DJ McCarty points and a pair of steals, but North Texas would close the period on a 14-3 run. North Texas would lead 19-14 after 10 minutes.
The Mean Green would roll that momentum into the second quarter behind a 7-0 run, pushing the margin to double digits. With 2:28 left in the half, Wichita State pulled back within nine, but North Texas used a 10-2 spurt in the final minute 1:49 to take its largest lead of the half into the locker room, 41-24.
Wichita State's defense had no answer for North Texas' Quincy Noble who outscored the Shockers by herself. Noble torched Wichita State for 25 first half points on 10-of-15 shooting and 5-of-7 from beyond the arc.
As a team North Texas was 7-for-13 from long range and shot 59 percent overall, while forcing 16 Wichita State turnovers. Offensively, Wichita State was just 1-of-7 from three-point range and 32 percent from the field.
A reinvigorated team came out of the locker room after halftime for Wichita State. Behind Asinde's 10 points, Wichita State outscored North Texas, 18-7, in the third quarter to make it a 48-42 game.
The final 10 minutes was all Wichita State. The Shockers scored 15 points to North Texas' five, making the second half score, 33-12.
Trailing by two with 2:54 remaining, Dean converted the game tying jumper and then four straight points from McCarty put the Shockers in front for good. North Texas went from 7:28 to 12 seconds left in the game without a point.
Up Next
Wichita State heads to Los Angeles over Thanksgiving for the LMU Thanksgiving Classic where they will face Montana and Loyola Marymount on Nov. 25-26.
