FARMERS BRANCH, Texas – LeTourneau University women's basketball team tripped up Texas A&M-Texarkana, 74-62, Tuesday at the MCM Elegante Dallas Christian College Christmas Classic.
 
Flora Akingbade had 12 points and 12 rebounds, and Ajanae Thomas scored 17 points and grabbed six boards as LETU improved to 2-1. Keauna Whitfield had 13 points and six rebounds, and Scruffy Hopkins had 10 points and seven rebounds as four Jackets reached double figures.
 
LETU, which will play Sul Ross State 1 p.m. Wednesday, went 31 of 42 from the free throw line. The Jackets outrebounded the Eagles, 51-35.
 
LeTourneau broke away from a 16-16 tie after the first quarter, outscoring Texarkana, 27-10, in the second quarter. The Eagles (1-6) pulled within 11 with 4:07 to play when Haley Stilson scored in the paint. But Briona Andrews knocked down a jumper in the lane a minute later to give the Jackets a 13-point lead. Milan Miller scored on a fastbreak at the 1:47 mark as Texarkana got within 10 before it became a free throw shooting contest down the stretch.
 
The YellowJackets outscored the Eagles, 20-11, in second chance opportunities. Texarkana's bench outproduced LeTourneau's depleted reserves unit, 29-22.
 
LeTourneau shot 56 percent in the second quarter, going 9 of 16 from the floor and 7-for-7 from the free throw line. The YellowJackets held the Eagles to 3 of 12 shooting in the period. Texarkana was 7-for-8 from the stripe in the quarter.
 
Both teams combined to commit 55 turnovers, including 29 for the Jackets. LETU was 3 of 21 from three-point range. Texarkana was 2 of 10.
 
Malacia Guy had six of the YellowJackets' 13 assists. Miller finished with 12 points and seven rebounds for the Eagles. Yasmine Arogunjo added 11 points and three steals.

The Jackets used a 10-2 run to open the second period. Thomas buried a triple 1:54 into the quarter to put LETU ahead, 26-18. Akingbade scored with 1:53 remaining in the half to extend the lead to 14. Whitfield's basket on a feed from Shailey Miller with four seconds left on the clock sent the YellowJackets into the break up, 43-26. LeTourneau stretched its lead to 18 when Ty Moon split a pair from the free throw line 4:12 into the second half. Whitfield's basket with 1:08 left in the third padded the cushion to 21. 

Trailing by 19 entering the final period, Texarkana used an 10-2 run to pull within 11 on Stilson's offensive putback. After Whitfield split a pair fro the stripe to grow LETU's lead out to 14, Arogunjo and Miller scored on back-to-back possessions as the Eagles pulled within 10. But Whitfield and Guy combined to sink four free throws over the final 1:43, and Texarkana missed two field goals, and couldn't come up with a key defensive rebound as the YellowJackets held on.

Both teams scored 22 points off turnovers. 

LeTourneau's 31 free throws was seven off the school record of 38, which came against Jarvis Christian on Jan. 17, 1998.