Independent Student Newspaper for the University of Texas at San Antonio

The Paisano

Independent Student Newspaper for the University of Texas at San Antonio

The Paisano

Independent Student Newspaper for the University of Texas at San Antonio

The Paisano

Tulsa Shock player scores WNBA record 51 points in victory

Photo Credit: Vince Cardenas

The San Antonio Silver Stars started out hot, scoring the first 10 points of the game, but they were no match in the end for Riquna Williams and the Tulsa Shock, losing 98-65 on Sunday, Sept. 8.

The Shock turned the ball over early and the Silver Stars jumped at the chance to pull ahead for an early lead. The Silver Stars built a lead as big as 11 points until the Shock slowly chipped away their lead to 39-38 late in the second quarter. The Silver Stars fought back and ended the half ahead, 43-39.

Things looked good as both teams shot above 50 percent to start of the third quarter, but the Stars were not expecting the storm ahead. Tulsa started pulling away when they took advantage of the Silver Stars’ turnovers. With the Stars shooting just 37 percent towards the end of the third, there was no answer for Williams and the Shock. Williams scored 20 points on 5-for-7 shooting from three-point land.

The Shock was up by 13 at the start of the fourth quarter, and their physical defense held the Silver Stars to only seven points in final period. Williams finished with 16 points in the quarter leading to a WNBA single-game record of 51 points.

Silver Stars coach Dan Hughes recognized the amazing night Williams had even in defeat.

Williams’ former college teammate at the University of Miami was thoroughly impressed.

“She can get her own shot and she got a lot of them. She played well,” Johnson said. “She had that LeBron look, that Kobe look in her eye. Everybody moved out of the way and she was out there getting it done.”

Johnson, who contributed 18 points for the Stars, called the game “embarrassing,” as the Stars’ 33-point loss to the Shock was also their third straight in a row.

The Silver Stars will have some time to recover in their final two games of the season. They leave the confines of the AT&T Center on Friday, Sept. 13 to face the Phoenix Mercury at 9:00pm.

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