CANYON, Texas (February 28, 2026) – Like they have so many times this season, the UT Permian Basin Falcons put up a great effort against one of the top teams in the country, falling this time by just seven points, 73-66, in the regular-season finale at No. 7 nationally-ranked West Texas A&M University.

Despite the defeat, UTPB (15-13 overall, 10-10 Lone Star Conference) still qualifies for the LSC Tournament by virtue of Texas A&M International University's 78-67 loss at UT Tyler.

The current season has seen UTPB battle hard against ranked teams all year long. It started with an eight-point loss (57-49) in overtime against No. 21 Colorado Mesa University (currently ranked No. 4) on Sunday, November 16, followed by a six-point loss (65-59) at No. 4 Lubbock Christian University on Wednesday, December 3. Then as the calendar flipped to 2026, UTPB fell 73-59 vs. No. 3 Texas Woman's University (currently ranked No. 1) on Friday, January 2, and most recently fell by just four points (60-56) in a rematch against No. 23 LCU on Saturday, February 21.

Against No. 7 WT on Saturday, UTPB did not allow a field goal by the Lady Buffs until over five minutes into the game, and a 3-pointer by Kenadi Rising put the Falcons up 7-3 at the first media timeout over six minutes in.

The scoring then picked up with 21 combined points in the final three and a half minutes of the first quarter, and a short jumper by Ja'Nya Thomas in the final 20 seconds put the Falcons ahead 16-15 at the end of the opening period.

The first play of the second quarter was a layup by Waikimihia Douglas-Karauna to put UTPB up 18-15. Then tied at 21-21, a layup by Rising started a 7-0 run to make it 28-21 Falcons going into the media timeout with just over four minutes left before halftime.

Still tied at 28-28 entering the final minute of the first half, UTPB was able to hold onto the lead thanks to a layup by Douglas-Karauna on a nice bounce pass by Mikalah Buckley, and then a corner three by Douglas-Karauna on the assist from Jonesha Neal made it a 33-28 UTPB lead at the intermission.

There were four ties and four lead changes in the first half, but UTPB led for 15:43 of clock time.

In the third quarter, however, UTPB was held to just three made field goals on 20 percent shooting while WT shot 5-for-10 (50 percent) from the field, 4-for-5 (80 percent) from three and 8-for-10 (80 percent) from the free throw line.

Despite being outscored 22-13 in the third quarter, UTPB never trailed by more than two possessions until WT went ahead 59-52 with under six minutes remaining, forcing a Falcon timeout. From there it was all Lady Buffs.

Earlier in the fourth quarter, UTPB scored the first four points on a 3-pointer by Rising and a free throw by Neal to tie it at 50-50 one minute into the period.

Five straight points by Kayla Kane (2 free throws, 1 3-pointer) in the next minute and a half allowed WT to regain the advantage.

With 6:50 left, two free throws by Alondra Reyes got UTPB to within three points (55-52) before a game-changing 14-0 run for WT over the next four minutes put the game out of reach. That made the score 69-52 with only three minutes to play. Back-to-back turnovers by UTPB after Reyes' free throws helped start the run for WT, and then a stretch of three straight misses from the field doomed the Falcons.

UTPB was 9-for-10 from the free throw line in the fourth quarter, but could not overcome WT's efficiency (7-for-12, 58.33 percent) from the field. In all for the second half, the Lady Buffs were 12-for-22 from the field, 6-for-11 from three and 15-for-17 from the free throw line.

Rising led UTPB with 16 points on 6-for-15 shooting from the field and 4-for-7 shooting from three. It was her fifth game in a row scoring in double-digits (season-high) while her four 3-pointers tied her season-high.

Neal followed with 14 points, five rebounds and five assists while shooting 3-for-5 from three and 5-for-6 from the free throw line. It was just the fourth game this season with double-digit scoring for Neal, and was her most made 3-pointers in a game.

Buckley scored 11 points for the second game in a row, Douglas-Karauna scored seven points, and Madison Walters had five points while also leading all players with nine rebounds for her second-best rebounding total of the season.

UTPB Head Women's Basketball Coach Rae Boothe said, "We competed against West Texas. They are very talented and highly experienced. They are No. 7 in the country and are having a phenomenal year. We are so close in so many ways. I thought we defended inside very well. We were even on turnovers and we outrebounded them. This was a heartbreaker that will allow us an opportunity to continue to grow and get better for the LSC Tournament."

Despite falling in its final three games of the regular season against teams all in the top-five in the Lone Star Conference, UTPB is still headed to the postseason.

THE BRACKET IS SET
The 2026 Lone Star Conference Women's Basketball Championship bracket is set following the conclusion of regular season games on Saturday (Feb. 28). The eight-team, single-elimination tournament will be held March 6-8 (Friday-Sunday) at Comerica Center in Frisco, Texas. The quarterfinals will take place Friday, March 6, followed by the semifinals on Saturday, March 7, and the championship game on Sunday, March 8.

TWU opens up against No. 8 seed UT Permian Basin (15-13, 10-10) opens up against top seed TWU (26-1, 20-0) at 6 p.m. CT Friday. The Falcons are making their third straight appearance in Frisco. They reached the title game in their first appearance (2024). TWU won its fourth consecutive regular season conference championship with a perfect 20-0 mark and earned the event's top seed. The Pioneers are ranked No. 1 in the country and have won 25 straight games. TWU is the two-time defending tournament champion and has reached the title game three straight years.

The Falcons will enter the postseason ranked eighth in the conference in points allowed per game (60.3), and are ninth in field goal percentage defense (.385), ninth in 3-point field goal percentage defense (.299), 10th in rebounds per game (36.1), tied for fifth in rebound margin (+3.7), and sixth in steals per game (9.89). Offensively, the Falcons are fifth in field goal percentage (.415), seven in 3-point field goal percentage (.297), eighth in 3-pointers made per game (5.9), and eighth in free throw percentage (.705).