OKLAHOMA CITY — A big second half and stellar performances from Hannah Alexander and Abbey George kept the Newman women's basketball team unbeaten to start Heartland Conference play with a 91-76 victory over Oklahoma Christian Saturday afternoon.

KEY SEQUENCE

The Jets (8-4, 2-0 Heartland) saw a big lead early in the second quarter turn into a slight advantage for the Eagles (1-7, 0-1 Heartland) early in the third quarter. Alexander keyed an eight-point run for the guests to put them back in front midway through the third, and a 6-2 burst for the Jets made it 63-57 with less than a minute to go in the third, and Newman extended its lead the rest of the way.

HOW IT HAPPENED

-Another impressive first quarter got the Jets out to a strong start. OC's Addy Clift scored the first points of the day on a 3-pointer, but Newman answered with a 7-0 run, getting two baskets from Alexander and a triple from Haley Albers to move in front. Later in the frame, and 10-point spurt from the Jets took it form a tie game to 19-9.

-Early in the second, a Nia Roberts layup between 3-pointers from Braxtyn Stewart and Bria DeGrate turned it into a 14-point Jet lead at 31-17, which proved crucial as the Eagles went on a run of their own. Using an 8-2 run then a 10-0 burst later in the half, OC tied it up at 38-38 with 54 seconds left, then went ahead on a 3-pointer in the final seconds.

-The early 8-0 run from the Jets put them up with 6:02 on the clock in the third, and they guests would not trail the rest of the way. OC tied it at 53-all at the 4:24 mark, but a 10-4 run got the Jets heading in the right direction.

-While the Eagles were hanging around to start the final period, Alexander and DeGrate combined for 10 points during a 12-2 run over four minutes that turned it into an 82-65 game with 4:09 to play.

NOTES

-Alexander matched her career high with 33 points on 14-of-23 shooting. The senior also went for 33 last season at St. Mary's.

-George put up a career-high 23 points on 8-of-14 shooting from the floor and 7-of-8 at the line, adding eight rebounds and three steals.

-Newman got off to a 2-0 start in Heartland Conference play for the first time since the 2011-12 season. The Jets capped that year with their second straight conference championship.

WHAT'S NEXT

The crazy start to the season slows down a bit for the Jets, who take a week off before hosting Northwestern Oklahoma State Dec. 9.