ABILENE – Facing yet another "elimination game," ACU sophomore guard Mack Lankford put her Wildcat teammates on her back Sunday afternoon and willed them to a 79-64 win over Texas A&M-Kingsville in a Lone Star Conference women's basketball game at Moody Coliseum.
Lankford poured in a career-high 38 points to help the Wildcats – who didn't trail the entire game – knock off the Lady Javelinas.
The win pushes the Wildcats to 11-13 overall and 6-12 in the league, while the Lady Javs fall to 8-17 and 7-12. ACU – fighting for the eighth and final spot in the LSC Post-Season Tournament – is in 10th place and will host last-place Texas A&M-Commerce at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday at Moody Coliseum.
Commerce will enter Wednesday night's game at 1-23 on the season and 0-18 in the LSC.
Lankford's seventh career game of more than 30 points saw her hit 11 of 23 shots from the field, including 4 of 10 from the free throw line. She hit 12 of 15 free throws to go along with eight rebounds, five assists, one block and five steals in 34 minutes.
ACU put this game away in the first five minutes as the Wildcats stormed to a 12-2 lead in the first 4:29 of the contest.
Renata Marquez got the scoring started with a layup 18 seconds into the game, followed by a 3-pointer from Lankford at the 17:10 mark to make it 5-0.
Lankford hit a layup at 16:21 to make it 7-0 before she buried a 3-pointer at 15:47 to make it 10-2. Lankford capped the game-opening run with a jumper at the 15:31 mark, making it 12-2.
Cecilee Perez finished with 12 points, six assists, six steals and two rebounds, while Marquez finished with 10 points, 10 reobunds, seven assists and five steals.
