Preview: Houston Christian Huskies at Texas-Rio Grande Valley Vaqueros

EDINBURG, Texas (Interstat) — The Texas-Rio Grande Valley women’s basketball team will look to complete a regular-season sweep of Houston Christian when the Southland Conference foes meet Thursday night at UT Pan Am Field House.

The Vaqueros (11-9, 4-3 Southland) defeated the visiting Huskies (5-13, 1-6) 65-53 just five days ago on Jan. 24. UTRGV dominated the paint in that victory, outrebounding Houston Christian 52-33.

UTRGV’s Charlotte O’Keefe was the defining force in the first matchup, posting a monstrous double-double with 19 points and 22 rebounds to go with three assists and three blocks. The junior forward has been a consistent presence, averaging a double-double over her last five games. Jalayah Ingram added 21 points and 13 rebounds in the win.

Houston Christian, mired in a slump with eight losses in its last nine games, will lean on guard Grace Booth. She led the Huskies with 11 points and six rebounds in the previous meeting with UTRGV. Booth is averaging 9.1 points per game in conference play.

The Vaqueros have found momentum, winning four of their last six contests to climb above .500. Their conference success has been built on defense, holding opponents to an average of 58.7 points in their four Southland wins.

Conversely, the Huskies have struggled to generate offense, failing to reach 70 points in any of their conference games this season. Their lone Southland win came against Texas A&M-Commerce on Jan. 17.

History favors the home team, as UTRGV has won three straight in the series. The Vaqueros will aim to protect their home court and solidify their standing in the conference race, while the Huskies seek a split and a crucial road victory to halt their skid.

Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. CST. Following this game, UTRGV will travel to face Incarnate Word on Saturday, while Houston Christian will visit Texas A&M-Corpus Christi.