SAN ANTONIO – Putting on a second half show for 1,000 cheering students, the University of the Incarnate Word women's basketball team defeated Texas A&M-International, 55-38, for their UIW School Day Game mid-day on Tuesday.
 
The Cardinals were led by sophomore Macy Ray with 12 points but also had Kara Speer and Imani Robinson in double-figures at 10 a piece.
 
Plagued by missed opportunities and turnovers, shooting 26 percent from the field, UIW would trail, 23-19, going into the break.
 
The Cardinals came out in the second half with high energy and hungry to score. A driving layup by Speer, followed by a steal and a fast break layup by Robinson, the Red and Black took control of the game and the lead in the third quarter.
 
Holding the Dust Devils to their lowest scoring quarter of the game in the fourth quarter as the Cardinals added 17 points in the final 10 minutes to win the game 55-38.
 
QUOTING COACH DOW
On the first half…
"It was a tale of two halves, the first half we felt like we couldn't get out of our own way offensively, with 17 turnovers. The main thing that we talked about at halftime was taking care of the ball, keeping things simple. I thought we were trying to do too many hard things, difficult shots, difficult passes. The other thing we addressed was that we gave up nine offensive rebounds, which was allowing them to hang around and get some second, third-chance opportunities."
 
On the second half…
"Second half we really took care of the ball, we only turned it over five times and shot it significantly better, 58 percent in the third quarter 48 in the fourth which was really good to see. And, they only got five offensive rebounds, so the things we addressed at halftime.
I thought we did a really good job at speeding them up to get them out of their rhythm a little bit. We ended up forcing 25 turnovers, but a lot of times we tried to make it difficult for them to get into their set plays."
 
After this game looking forward…
"It is something to build on, we don't want to make a habit of having slow first halves and try to rally all the time in the second half."
 
NOTABLES

• Macy Ray led the team with 12 points, three assists, three steals and two rebounds.
• The Cardinals had three players score in double digits for the second game this season; Ray (12), Kara Speer (10) and Imani Robinson (10).
• Speer and Imani both had 8 rebounds.
• Omozee had a season-high two blocks for the second time this season.
• Victoria Jackson had a career high four steals.
• The team shot a season high 41.7% from three.

 
UP NEXT
UIW is on the road for the next three games against Ohio (Nov. 23), Colorado State (Nov. 26) and Kansas State (Dec. 3).
 
For the most up-to-date information on UIW Athletics, visit uiwcardinals.com, follow the Cardinals on Twitter @UIWAthletics and like UIW Athletics on Facebook.
 
Follow the team on Twitter @UIWWBB and on Instagram @uiw_womenshoops.