The Arkansas State women’s basketball team had four players score in double figures, dominated the boards and used a strong second-half performance to turn a three-point halftime deficit into a 20-point win as it knocked off Arkansas-Pine Bluff, 85-65, Tuesday night at First National Bank Arena.
Junior guard Izzy Higginbottom led A-State with a game-high 22 points and was joined in double figures by Lauryn Pendleton (15), Mailyn Wilkerson (12) and Melodie Kapinga (11). Higginbottom scored at least 20 for the fourth time this year, while Wilkerson and Kapinga both finished with a season-high points total.
The Red Wolves posted a .455 shooting percentage on their way to a season-high scoring mark against a Division I opponent. UAPB (1-6) countered with a .429 percentage, but A-State limited the Golden Lions to just 11 field goals and a 38 percent shooting in the second half.
Arkansas State jumped out to a 22-13 lead in the first period, but was outscored 24-12 in the second as UAPB ended the half on a 10-0 run to take a 37-34 advantage into the break. However, the Red Wolves scored the first 10 points of the second half to regain the lead, 44-37.
A-State went on to outscore UAPB 51-28 in the second half, improving to 3-1 on its home court. Also defeating Northern Illinois and Hendrix, all three victories have come by a double-figure margin.
Sophomore guard Wynter Rogers posted a career-high 10 rebounds to lead the Red Wolves to a 45-27 advantage on the boards. Kapinga also hauled down a season-high nine rebounds, narrowly missing her second career double-double. Including nine by Kapinga, A-State collected 17 offensive rebounds to help it finish with 23 second-chance points.
Arkansas State returns to action Saturday, Dec. 2, with a 2:00 p.m. game at Kansas City.
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