FAYETTEVILLE - Junior Shameka Christon scored 20 points to lead the 13th-ranked University of Arkansas Lady Razorback basketball team to a 17 point win over the Tulsa Golden Hurricane on Monday night at Bud Walton Arena, 66-49.

The win improves the Lady Razorbacks to 7-1 on the season while Tulsa drops to 3-5.

Arkansas once again began the half cold as they emerged from the locker room, allowing the Golden Hurricane to carve into the Lady Razorback's double-digit lead. Tulsa brought themselves within five at several junctures over the first 10 minutes of the final period, but just as the Golden Hurricane looked like they would close the gap even more, Arkansas would hit a timely shot to keep Tulsa at bay.

"We had a rough time with our offense, but the defense gave us the kind of effort we needed," UA head coach Gary Blair. "We were a little tired tonight with three games in four days."

As the clock ticked under 10 minutes, Arkansas once again used its defense as a weapon , creating turnovers and poor shot selection by the Golden Hurricane. The inconsistent Tulsa play allowed the Lady Razorbacks to take another 10-point lead which grew to as many as 13 at the 6:30 mark.

With command of the game, Arkansas kept its up-tempo defense going to keep the Golden Hurricane off balance, a scheme that worked repeatedly throughout the contest. The Lady Razorbacks forced 33 Tulsa turnovers which led to 29 Arkansas points.

"It was one of the toughest defensive teams that we have seen this year," senior guard Allison Curtin said. "They guarded me well and they switched in a lot of people who all did a good job."

"We managed to close the Curtain tonight," Christon quipped.

The Lady Razorbacks opened the contest cold from the floor as they missed their first eight shots and fell behind the Golden Hurricane by nine before a Christon layup went in at 15:02. The deficit could have been worse if not for several Tulsa turnovers, which were forced by Arkansas' half court defense. Behind, Arkansas rallied for six unanswered over the next minute of play to pull within three.

Arkansas' India Lewis connected on a driving layup with 14:48 to play in the first half for her first points of the game, but more importantly, the bucket signaled her 1,000th career point. The Lady Razorbacks took their first lead of the game at 13-12 on a Christon free throw, then hit a 19-foot deuce to put Arkansas up by three. Including Christon's points, Arkansas went on a 22-3 run over a five minute span to take a convincing 22-12 lead at seven minutes to play in the half.

"I didn't shoot well, but my teammates stepped up and that is why we are so good now," Arkansas senior guard India Lewis said. "I wasn't even thinking about (the 1000th point). I was focused on winning, we are here to play."

Tulsa chipped away at the Arkansas lead and took it down to seven with 30 seconds left in the half, but Arkansas countered with four points including a layup at the buzzer to take its biggest lead of the contest at 11 at the halftime buzzer.

Two Lady Razorbacks scored in double figures. Behind Christon's 20, Lewis scored 15. Tulsa was led by Curtin who netted 15 of her own before fouling out with 48 seconds left.

The Lady Razorbacks will get some much needed rest from the court as they prepare for finals over the next week. Arkansas' next game will be on Dec. 19, when the Southwest Missouri State Bears invade Bud Walton Arena for a 7:00 p.m. start.