AUSTIN, Texas. – LEXI FATHEREE scored a career-high 28 points Saturday as St. Edward's women's basketball blew past Newman, 83-64.
 
Fatheree led all scorers with 28 points. ABBY HOPPER recorded a double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds. KHIANI CLARK also scored in double digits with 10 points, and SHAKERA BARNES dished out nine assists in the win.
 
St. Edward's (13-6, 9-1 Heartland) remains in first place in the Heartland Conference and completes the regular-season sweep of the Jets. Newman (13-8, 3-6 Heartland) falls to sixth place in the league after an 11-2 start to the season.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• Newman opened the game on an 8-2 run, shooting 80 percent (4-5) from the floor.
• The Hilltoppers responded with a jumper from Barnes and a 3-pointer from Fatheree to pull within one.
• SAUNDRA GUILLORY came off the bench to score six first-quarter points, giving SEU a 20-17 lead at the end of the first quarter.
• St. Edward's outscored the Jets 22-12 in the second quarter to take a commanding 42-29 halftime lead.
• The Hilltoppers never looked back as Hopper and Fatheree combined for 27 second-half points.

 
HILLTOPPER NOTES

• St. Edward's remains tied for first place in the Heartland Conference standings, holding the tiebreaker over St. Mary's.
• The Hilltoppers are now over .500 with a 10-9 lead in the all-time series against Newman.
• Barnes' is all alone in sixth place for career assists in the SEU record book, surpassing head coach J.J. Riehl.
• Fatheree has scored over 20 points in three of her 11 games this season. She has over 700 career points.

 
QUOTE BOARD: HEAD COACH J.J. RIEHL
"We weren't expecting them to play zone (defense) and they came in with the zone. After the first couple of possessions I thought we settled down and we shot well. Defensively in the second quarter we held them to 12 and I think that set the tone. I don't know that we played exceptionally well for the duration of the game, but the second quarter was definitely huge."
 
UP NEXT
St. Edward's continues its homestand Saturday, Feb. 4 at 1 p.m. against Oklahoma Christian. Tickets will be available at the door. Live stats and video will be available at GoHilltoppers.com.
 
GAME INFORMATION
Score: St. Edward's 83, Newman 64
Records: St. Edward's (13-6, 9-1 Heartland), Newman (13-8, 3-6 Heartland)
Leading Scorers: St. Edward's-Fatheree (28), Newman-Wright (17)
Attendance: 276
 
HEARTLAND CONFERENCE STANDINGS
Team                       Conference                Overall
St. Edward's              9-1                              13-6
St. Mary's                  9-1                              17-3
Lubbock Christian     5-2                              10-8
UA Fort Smith           7-3                              12-9
Oklahoma Christian  6-4                              11-11
Newman                    3-6                              13-8
Rogers State             2-8                              6-14
TAMU-International   2-8                              2-18
Panhandle State       0-10                            1-17
 
 
For the latest information on the St. Edward's University Women's Basketball team, follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram at @SEUWBasketball, or visit us at www.GoHilltoppers.com.