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| Tuesday, February 11 Tech coach Sharp closing in on 500-win plateau Associated Press |
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Texas Tech looks to beat Texas A&M for the 14th straight time and pull its coach closer to a milestone victory when the Big 12 teams meet at United Spirit Arena on Wednesday. The Lady Raiders (No. 8 ESPN/USA Today; No. 7 AP) haven't lost to the Aggies since March 9, 1996. Texas Tech beat Texas A&M 77-56 on Jan. 8 to take a 46-8 lead in the series. Tech (19-2, 8-1) has won four in a row after Sunday's 70-48 home victory over Iowa State. Jia Perkins scored 19 points for Texas Tech, which improved to 10-0 at home and remained tied with No. 11 Texas and fifth-ranked Kansas State atop the conference. During its four-game run, the Lady Raiders have averaged 79.5 points and haven't allowed an opponent more than 58. Against the Cyclones, they shot 47 percent and held a 39-21 rebounding edge. "On the offensive end, that's as closely as we've followed our plan this year,'' said Texas Tech coach Marsha Sharp, who has 498 career wins. "Because we were able to do that, it made the day much easier.'' Tech gets most of its scoring from Plenette Pierson and Perkins, who average 18.7 and 16.4 points per game, respectively. Texas A&M (9-11, 2-7) relies heavily on junior Toccara Williams, its lone double-digit scorer at 13.2 points per game. Williams also leads the team with 5.9 assists. Her 5.1 steals per game rank No. 1 in the country. Williams scored 19 points Saturday, but the Aggies lost for the sixth time in seven games, 55-49 to Colorado. Williams shot 7-for-12 from the field, but her teammates went 13-for-45. She added three assists and seven steals. With five more assists, Williams will become the second Aggies player and just the sixth Big 12 player to reach 500 assists. She needs two points to join former Nebraska standout Nicole Kubik as the only Big 12 players with 800 points, 500 assists and 300 steals. Texas A&M will be facing its third ranked opponent in four games. The Aggies are 1-2 during the stretch. |
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