PHOENIX, Arizona -- The University of the Incarnate Word women's basketball team battled until the end in a non-conference meeting with Grand Canyon Friday night in Phoenix. Freshman forward Starr Omozee tallied her first collegiate double-double (11 points and 15 rebounds) in the loss.
 
NOTABLES

• Omozee led the team with 15 rebounds on her way to her first collegiate double-double.
• The freshman poured in 11 points on .375 shooting while committing no fouls or turnovers for her team.
• That was the first Cardinal double-double since Jan. 24, 2018 – Imani Robinson – 22 points, 12 rebounds vs. HBU.
• It was the first double-double by a freshman since Robinson did so on March 4, 2016 at Texas A&M-CC (14 points, 10 rebounds)
• It is just the third double-double by a freshman in the Christy Smith era, and the first by a student-athlete other than Robinson.
• Speaking of Robinson, the now junior pre-season all-conference selection led the team in points, with 17. She also added five rebounds, two steals and an assist.
• Junior forward Lunden Henry was the third Cardinal with double-digit point outputs tonight, finishing with 10 points, five rebounds and her first block of the 2018-19 campaign.
• As a team, UIW outscored GCU 36-31 in the second half, ultimately coming up just short of a come back.

HOW IT HAPPENED
QTR 1 (11-18): The Antelopes established their offense under the UIW basket to grab a quick lead, 10-2. UIW fought back, finishing the quarter on a 5-2 run, but GCU still held a seven point lead at quarters end. Sophomore forward Olivia Noah led the team with three points.

QTR 2 (26-43): GCU caught fire from distance in the second frame, extending its first quarter lead into double-digits. The UIW offense did well to endure the onslaught by scoring 15 points of their own, but GCU ended the first half with a 17 point lead off five three-pointers in the quarter. Omozee led the team with four points in the frame.

QTR 3 (41-61): UIW found its touch from beyond the arc after half, sinking three long distance shots from sophomore guard Kara Speer, junior guard Alexandra Busby-Leija and Robinson. But the continued offensive success of GCU widened the lead to 20. Busby-Leija and Robinson led the team with five points each.

QTR 4 (63-74): The fourth quarter belonged to Omozee and Robinson. Both, along with some contributions from L. Henry, put together the best offensive output in a single quarter (22 points) since Jan. 24, 2018 (22 points in QTR 3 vs. HBU). Omozee finished with nine rebounds in the period, Robinson had 10 points and UIW forced GCU to play until the final whistle. The Cardinals cut the lead to 10 points with three minutes remaining, but ultimately, the lopes came away with the victory on their home court.
 
UP NEXT
The Cardinals close out the road trip on Sunday at South Dakota with a 3:15 p.m. tip. They follow that by opening the home schedule against Houston next Friday at 11:30 a.m. The game against Houston is Elementary Day. Local elementary schools have been invited to attend the game during the school day.
 

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