Game Notes (PDF)

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. – Northern Arizona women's basketball is back on the road this week with games against Portland State on Friday, February 19 and Eastern Washington on Saturday, February 20. Both games are scheduled for 8:05 p.m. tip-offs.

After a two-week home stand, NAU (5-19, 3-8 BSC) will travel to Portland, Ore., to face the Big Sky Conference's third-place team, Portland State (13-11, 7-4 BSC). In last year's matchup, NAU lost in Portland, 87-58.

The Lumberjacks defeated Portland State earlier this season, 86-80. NAU is attempting to sweep the Vikings for the first time since the 2005-06 season.

On Saturday, NAU travels to Eastern Washington (15-9, 8-3 BSC), the Big Sky's best team so far this season. The Eagles defeated NAU, 66-52, on January 14. The Lumberjacks lost 74-60 in Cheney, Wash., last year.

LAST GAME: IDAHO STATE
Northern Arizona women's basketball was defeated by Idaho State, 71-64, on Saturday in the Walkup Skydome in the Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) annual Pink Zone game. Caty Huntington and Amy Patton combined for 37 points but the Lumberjacks were undone at the free-throw line shooting 5-of-15 for the game. NAU out shot Idaho State for the game 45.6-percent to 40.7-percent, but the Lumberjacks struggled at the free-throw line shooting 33.3-percent and were out-rebounded 43-31. Huntington shot 6-of-11 from the field and made a career-high five three-point field goals. Patton pushed her streak of double-digit scoring to seven games with 17 points on 8-of-22 shooting. Idaho State totaled three players in double figures with Oana Iacovita turning in a game-high 22 points.

UPCOMING GAME: PORTLAND STATE
Portland State has played 11 Big Sky Conference games posting a 7-4 record so far during league play. The Vikings are 13-11 overall. Portland State is 1-2 in its last three Big Sky games after opening league play 6-2. One of its two losses in those first eight games came in Flagstaff against the Lumberjacks. NAU defeated the Vikings 86-80 on February 19. Portland State has gone 4-2 since that game. The team is 10-3 at home this season and lost just one game in five. Portland State is under the direction of Sherri Murrell, who is in her third season at the helm of the Vikings program. Portland State is averaging 69.6 points-per-game limiting its opponents to 67.6 points-per-game. The Vikings are led by Claire Faucher who averages 14.1 ppg and dishes out 4.9 assist-per-game.

MULTIMEDIA
Friday's game can be seen live on Big Sky TV with Teri Marini handling play-by-play. Portland State will provide live stats through www.goviks.com. Both will be available free of charge.

SERIES HISTORY
The Lumberjacks are 19-11 all-time against Portland State in a series that dates back to 1985. NAU is 6-8 against the Vikings at home all-time. In their last meeting in January, the Lumberjacks beat Portland State, 86-80. NAU snapped a five-game losing streak to Portland State with the win. Head coach Laurie Kelly is 8-6 against the Bengals in her seven-plus years at NAU.

BIG TOTALS
As of February 15, freshman guard Amy Patton leads the Big Sky Conference in scoring (18.2 ppg), rebounding (8.1), double-doubles (9), 30-point games (3), and 10 or more rebound performances (10). She is averaging 20.2 points-per-game in conference play and 9.2 rebounds-per-game-both tops in the Big Sky.

NCAA RANKINGS
Three Lumberjacks rank inside the NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Top 100: junior guard Vickie Toney, sophomore guard Caty Huntington, and freshman guard Amy Patton. Toney is No. 54 in assists at 4.7 per-game. Huntington is No. 50 in the nation with 2.6 steals-per-game. She is tops in the Big Sky in that category. Patton is No. 36 in the country with 18.2 points-per-game and No. 97 in the nation with 8.1 rebounds-per-game.

DOUBLE-DOUBLES
Freshman guard Amy Patton is first in the Big Sky Conference and No. 30 in NCAA Division I women's basketball in double-doubles with nine through 24 games played. Patton has more than twice as many double-doubles than any other league player. Jenna Galloway, Tyler Stephens-Jenkins, and Vickie Toney are also among 29 players who have recorded double-doubles this season. Toney was the latest when she recorded 19 points and 10 rebounds against Montana State on January 28.

FORWARD RISING
Junior forward Lauren Hoisington is shooting 45.0-percent from the field as of February 15 and providing NAU with consistent scoring inside. In conference play, Hoisington is one of only five players shooting over 50-percent (50.8) and positioned in fourth place. She had a season-high 19 points on 8-of-10 shooting from the field against UMKC earlier this year.

QUICK HANDS
Sophomore guard Caty Huntington ranks first in the Big Sky Conference and No. 50 in NCAA Division I women's basketball with 2.7 steals-per-game. She has recorded a steal in every game but one and recorded two or more steals in 16 of the Lumberjacks' 24 games.

CLOSE CALLS
NAU has played in eight games decided by five points or less this year and hold a 2-6 record in those contests. The Lumberjacks have played in 12 games with the margin of victory in single digits. NAU is 3-9 in those games.

HITTING STRIDE
Freshman guard Tyler Stephens-Jenkins has turned it up during Big Sky Conference play. Stephens-Jenkins has emerged as a consistent scorer for the Lumberjacks and now sits in 3rd among freshman in the league in scoring with 9.0 points-per-game. She is also 9th in field-goal percentage. The Goodyear, Ariz., product has shown versatility also ranking 11th in blocks (0.9) and 13th in steals (1.6).

AT HER BEST
Junior guard Vickie Toney is playing her best basketball of the season ranking among the best in the conference in assist to turnover ratio during league play. She sits in second place behind only Ashley Garcia. Toney has a 1.7 assist to turnover ratio while Garcia holds a slight lead at 1.8. Toney also ranks No. 54 in NCAA Division I women's basketball with 4.7 assists-per-game.

LINEUP SHUFFLE
The Lumberjacks have used nine different starting lineups this fall with head coach Laurie Kelly looking for the right combination on a game-to-game basis. NAU has settled into a starting lineup of Lauren Hoisington, Jenna Galloway, Amy Patton, Tyler Stephens-Jenkins, and Vickie Toney. The group has started the last three consecutive games, but with an injury to Stephens-Jenkins, Caty Huntington stepped back into the starting lineup over the past two games.

ABOVE FORTY
The Lumberjacks have shot over 40-percent in six of their 11 Big Sky games and shot its second best percentage two weeks at Montana (47.1). NAU has shot over 40-percent from the field 11 times this season. The Lumberjacks season-high came against Portland State with NAU shooting 48.3-percent in a game in which they also set a season-high in points (86).

EIGHTY SIX
The women totaled a season-high in points in an 86-80 win over Portland State on January 16. The freshman tandem of Amy Patton and Tyler Stephens-Jenkins accounted for 55.8-percent of the Lumberjacks' scoring with 25 and 23 points, respectively. NAU shot 48.3-percent for the game.

WEEKLY AWARD
NAU received its first Big Sky Conference weekly award with Amy Patton being selected Co-Player of the Week. The honor was the first of Patton's career in a weekend where she exploded for 61 points (30.5 ppg) and 21 rebounds (10.5 rpg). The freshman guard from Tempe, Ariz., shared the award with Sacramento State's Charday Hunt.

DID YOU KNOW ... Northern Arizona swimming and diving has been recognized by the College Swimming Coaches Association of America (CSCAA) for its academic excellent in the classroom.  In 2010, the women earned the Division I Team Scholar All-American award for the fifth time under head coach Andy Johns.