SAN ANTONIO – Aliyah Collins broke out for a career-high 28 points in the loss against Lamar University on Thursday night. UIW fell in the final seconds against the No. 2 team in the Southland Conference for a final score of 72-68.
 
Collins shot 11-for-17 from the field, 3-for-6 from the 3-point line and 3-for-4 from the free throw line. Nina De Leon Negron added 15 points, eight rebounds, three assists, and two steals while going perfect the from FT line (5-5).
 
A Lamar turnover seconds after the jump ball fueled the already hungry UIW team. The notorious Cardinal defense locked down Lamar, holding the team to only eight first-quarter points. Collins subbed into the game and produced six quick points to extend the lead to 13-8 and UIW scored five more to end the first with a score of 17-8.
 
Hanna Wheeler set the tone for the second quarter with a 3-pointer on the first possession to extend the lead to eleven (20-8). Collins once again took control of the game scoring six straight buckets and slicing through Lamar's full-court press. Behind an impressive 17 points in the first from Collins, UIW held a 39-29 edge over Lamar at the half.
 
Lamar sparked a 7-0 run to come within seven (45-38) midway through the third and carried that momentum to a two-point deficit (47-45). UIW stood strong and held off LU through the end of the quarter to head into the final ten minutes up, 51-47.
 
A pair of LU free throws tied the game up with six minutes left (56-56) and again at 58-58 under the five-minute mark. With UIW already in the bonus, De Leon Negron's free throws reclaimed the lead (60-58). A foul on the other end put both teams in the bonus for the last four and a half minutes. Lamar broke away at 62 with a 3-pointer and took a five-point lead with under thirty seconds left to win the game, 72-68.
 
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