Sweet victory

By SETH STRINGER

LUBBOCK – Five weeks removed from their last win? Three weeks removed from their last game?

Not exactly the recipe for national tournament momentum, eh? Psh, don't tell that to the NWF State women's basketball team.

It turns out a little R&R was all the Raiders (23-6) needed to recapture their swagger, Bart Walker's 14th-seeded crew cruising to a 70-57 win on Tuesday over 19th-seeded Panola to open the NJCAA Division I tournament in Lubbock.

"It was just about getting back to what we do best, getting some injuries fixed and getting some confidence back in shooting the ball," said Walker, who in the offseason took over a program that finished 1-11 in the Panhandle. "The time off turned out to be a good thing and helped us in a lot of ways."

Awa Trasi dropped 20 points, nine rebounds and four assists, Trinity Baptiste and Georgia Gayle each scored 11 points and the Raiders shot 51 percent from the floor to earn their first win since Feb. 10.

During the four-game skid the Raiders shot 35, 33, 31 and 28 percent from the floor. But on Tuesday they committed to working the ball inside, as evidenced by their 38 points in the post.

"We played in the paint a little more," Walker said. "That opened up some opportunities around the perimeter and we were able to get some better looks. I thought we did a great job of sharing the ball."

Now the Raiders are headed to the Sweet 16, where they'll tip off tomorrow against third-seeded Moberly Area at 5 p.m. in Lubbock.

The Greyhounds, just one of two undefeated teams in the tournament, enter the matchup 32-0 and fresh off a Region 16 title to follow a 9-0 romp through the Missouri College Athletic Conference. The Greyhounds won the 1982 national championship but have not finished better than third since.

"Moberly, they've got a lot of size," Walker said. "They also play a lot of zone, and we haven't played against a team that plays zone in awhile. We just have to be prepared and set up our offense and make them feel uncomfortable. We have to make them do things they're not happy doing."

Ending the four-game skid was on the shoulders of a Raiders defensive effort that forced 20 turnovers and limited Panola to 31-percent shooting and a 6-for-21 clip from beyond the arc. The Raiders also won the battle of the boards at the Rip Griffin Center with a 34-28 margin.

"Our defense has been our staple all year," Walker said. "We really took them out of what they wanted to do and what they felt comfortable in. Our ladies did a great job of listening and executing the game plan."

NWF State created separation toward the end of the first quarter. Down 12-11, Baptiste had a traditional and-1 , Trasi converted inside and Baptiste opened the second quarter with a basket to make it an 7-0 run. A pair of Gayle 3-pointers later kept the lead at bay and Leandra Echi beat the halftime buzzer to give the Raiders a 33-25 lead.

The advantage never dipped below six after, the Raiders leading 53-42 after three quarters and by as many as 15 in the final frame.