Discovering the Untold Stories of the University of North Texas

WICHITA, Kan. – The UNT women’s basketball squad edged out a late surge from Wichita State to secure their conference debut, 62-56, on Sunday afternoon at Charles Koch Arena.

The Mean Green improved to 9-4 on the overall season and 1-0 within the American Athletic Conference, marking their first conference victory since the 2020-21 season.

“You must find a way to secure a win, particularly on the road and we accomplished that,” head coach Jason Burton stated. “It required a strong beginning for us in this match. I appreciated our aggressive start, and I felt we effectively managed their runs. It feels rewarding to achieve a win on the road and kick off the conference schedule at 1-0.”

North Texas started strong, building a 14-point advantage in the first half, thanks to diverse scoring and solid defense that limited Wichita State to 24% shooting from the field during the half. UNT concluded the second quarter with a 15-3 surge, restricting the Shockers to just one basket over the last 7:53 of the quarter, allowing them to lead 37-23 at halftime.

The lead for UNT would diminish in the second half as Wichita State fought back, narrowing the deficit to one point at the midway mark of the fourth quarter. A Jaelyn Talley putback followed by a layup on consecutive possessions provided North Texas with a 52-47 advantage, initiating an 11-2 run that secured the victory.

Desiree Wooten and Ereauna Hardaway topped the scoring for North Texas with 12 points each. Wooten also contributed a career-high eight rebounds and six assists, while Hardaway equaled her career-best with seven rebounds for the second straight game.

Tommisha Lampkin also finished with double-digit scoring, contributing 11 points and 14 rebounds. This marks her 24^th career double-double, making it the fifth highest in program history. The senior further etched her name in history on Sunday, taking sole ownership of third place on the career rebounds leaderboard with 718, surpassing Talicia Sanders and Empress Drane.

North Texas is set to return to Denton to face Tulsa on Wednesday, Jan. 1 at 4 p.m. CT, beginning the 2025 calendar year with their first home game of the league schedule.