Texas Tech 67, SW Missouri 59

LUBBOCK, Texas, March 23 (UPI) -- Plenette Pierson scored 25 points and grabbed 13 rebounds Sunday night to help give Texas Tech a tougher-than-expected, 67-59 victory over Southwest Missouri in the opening round of the NCAA Women's Tournament Midwest Region.

Pierson, Texas Tech's leading scorer entering the tournament with 17.8 points per game, scored 15 in the second half and connected on 10 of 15 shots overall. The senior forward also recorded three assists, two blocks and a pair of steals.

The Lady Raiders (27-5), seeded second, struggled for most of the first half but scored the final 10 points of the opening 20 minutes to post a 29-23 halftime lead. Despite connecting on just two of 16 from three-point range, Texas Tech shot 44 percent overall.

Jia Perkins added 14 points and a pair of blocks for the Lady Raiders.

Kari Koch had 19 points, four assists and seven steals for the Missouri Valley Conference champion Lady Bears (18-13), who trailed by as many as 17 points in the second half.