EL PASO, Texas – Missouri State women's basketball led wire-to-wire in its 71-64 road victory at UTEP here on Thursday night to remain undefeated in Conference USA action.
 
Kaemyn Bekemeier led the way for the Lady Bears (12-5, 4-0 CUSA) with 21 points (7-12 FG, 2-3 3FG, 5-5 FT) and three assists. Lainie Douglas and Maiesha Washington followed in double figures with 13 and 12 points, respectively.
 
Missouri State came out firing on all cylinders immediately, kicking the game off with a 10-0 run to set the tone against the Miners (9-7, 1-4 CUSA). Bekemeier contributed five points in the run, along with Maycee James and Faith Lee to get off to a good start. Later in the frame with the lead at eight, freshman Kendal Brueggen drained a triple to extend the lead to double figures at 17-6. A short 5-0 run by UTEP and then a couple of late Cady Pauley free throws gave MoState a 19-11 lead after one.
 
It was a slow start offensively for both teams in the second quarter as the teams were deadlocked at four points apiece at the 3:37 mark. That's when a Bekemeier jumper finally gave MoState some momentum as Douglas and Lee scored the next two buckets to cap a 6-0 run that pushed the lead to a game-high 14 points. UTEP didn't back down as they finished the first half on an 8-2 run to cut the MoState lead back to single digits, 31-23, at the intermission.
 
Out of the break, it was the Bekemeier and Washington show with the duo combining for 18 of MoState's 21 points in the quarter. The reigning CUSA player of the week Bekemeier scored the first eight points of the period for the Lady Bears, but UTEP was clawing its way back into the game, pulling within one possession on four occasions. Washington got hot in the last 4:11 of the third, scoring eight points to help keep the visiting Lady Bears out in front. The only points that didn't belong to the aforementioned duo was a crucial triple by JaNyla Bush with 1:26 left to stretch the lead back out to nine points.
 
Leading by seven heading into the fourth, the Lady Bears put together a couple of important sequences to maintain control of the game. Bekemeier hit a couple of free throws early in the frame before a Washington layup gave the Lady Bears an eight-point cushion. Later, a James jumper in the paint sparked a short 6-0 surge that pushed the advantage back out to double figures and gave MoState the space it needed to close out the game.
 
Missouri State shot 50 percent (28-56) from the field, 40 percent (4-10) from three and 69 percent (11-16) from the charity stripe for the game. The Lady Bears forced 19 UTEP turnovers and turned those mishaps into 23 points. MoState dominated in points in the paint, 42-28, and in bench points, 21-6.
 
The Lady Bears close out their two-game road swing with a trip to New Mexico State on Saturday, January 17. Tipoff against the Aggies is set for 1:00 p.m. CT and the game will stream on ESPN+.