Bailey Maupin scores 25 to lead No. 18 Texas Tech women over Houston 85-61

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HOUSTON (AP) — Bailey Maupin scored 25 points and No. 18 Texas Tech cruised to an 85-61 victory over Houston on Saturday night.

Maupin made 7 of 13 shots with five 3-pointers and all six of her free throws for the Lady Raiders (22-3, 9-3 Big 12 Conference). She also had six rebounds.

Jalynn Bristow scored 15 on 6-for-8 shooting for Texas Tech, adding five rebounds and four blocked shots. Gemma Nunez pitched in with 13 points, seven assists and six steals.

Amirah Abdur-Rahim paced the Cougars (7-16, 1-11) with 18 points and seven rebounds, but she also had seven of Houston's 21 turnovers that the Lady Raiders turned into 40 points. Kierra Merchant had 13 points and Briana Peguero scored 12 but had six turnovers.

Bristow and Maupin sank 3-pointers in a 16-3 run in the final five minutes of the first quarter and Texas Tech led 21-12.

Maupin hit all four of her first-half 3-pointers, scoring 16 to help the Lady Raiders build a 44-28 advantage at halftime. Bristow added 10 points as Houston shot 58.6% before the break. Texas Tech hit 6 of 13 from beyond the arc, while Houston made 1 of 5 and shot 39.3% overall.

The Cougars played Tech to a 15-all tie in the third quarter, but Denae Fritz buried a 3-pointer with seven minutes remaining to give the Lady Raiders their first 20-point lead at 66-46 with seven minutes remaining.

Tech beat Houston for the seventh straight time. The Lady Raiders have won 28 of the last 30 matchups and lead the all-time series 46-14.

Houston lost its first nine conference games before beating Cincinnati 72-70 at home.

Texas Tech: Hosts Kansas on Tuesday.

Houston: Hosts Colorado on Wednesday.

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