March 14, 2008

KATY, Texas - The No. 4 seed Lamar University women's basketball team looks to punch their ticket to the Southland Conference Tournament finals when they take on the No. 8 seed Texas A&M Corpus Christi in a SLC Tournament semifinal Friday afternoon at 2:30 at the Merrell Center in Katy, Texas.

This will be the second meeting of the year for the two teams who met two weeks ago in Beaumont. The Islanders got the best of LU in that game, taking down the Lady Cardinals 69-67 in overtime.

Friday's game will be the eighth all time meeting between the two programs, with Corpus Christi holding a 6-1 advantage in the win column.

The Lady Cardinals enter Friday's game with an 18-12 overall record, having won four straight games including a 60-48 win over the Stephen F. Austin Ladyjacks Wednesday night in the opening round of the SLC Tournament.

Lamar is led by Nikki Williams who is averaging 14.1 points per game while averaging a team-best 3.8 assists and 2.5 steals per game. Tamara Abalde is averaging a team-high 15.8 points and 7.1 rebounds per game while Brittney Williams is averaging 13 points per contest. Aida Bakhos has also been solid for LU this year, averaging 7.1 points and 7.1 rebounds per game.

As a team the Lady Cards are shooting .399 from the field and are averaging 64.1 points per game while allowing 62.7 points per game. Lamar has also won the battle on the boards this season, out rebounding their opponents 39.1 to 36.7.

A&M-Corpus Christi enters the game with a 12-19 record, on the heels of a 106-88 win over the No. 1 seed Texas State on Wednesday night. The Islanders set a new Southland Conference tournament record with their 106 points.

The Islanders balanced scoring attack is led by Elisa Beagle who is averaging team highs in scoring and rebounding with 10.5 points and 7.4 boards per game. Mercedes Cooper and Deziree Green have also been solid offensively, averaging 9.3 and 9.2 points per game respectively.

As a team Corpus Christi is averaging 58.2 points per game while giving up 64.2 points per contest. They are shooting .382 from the field and have been out rebounded 40 to 37.3