FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (November 29, 2020) – Another quick start pushed the Northern Arizona University women's basketball team out to an early lead against the No. 7 Arizona Wildcats on Sunday afternoon, but a strong third quarter for the home team spoiled the upset attempt.
Hitting nearly 60% from the field, the Wildcats pushed a six-point halftime lead up to double-digits and came away with a 76-63 victory over the Lumberjacks at McKale Center in Tucson.
Coming off of 20-point performances to open the season on Wednesday in Las Vegas, sophomore
Emily Rodabaugh and senior
JJ Nakai were at it again in the opening quarter. Rodabaugh scored six of NAU's first eight points across the opening three minutes of the game while Nakai added five points herself.
"JJ is just such a dynamic scorer and Emily is playing really, really confidently right now and is a very good scorer as well," NAU head coach
Loree Payne said. "I was proud of the team for how they started considering we weren't sure what to expect with Arizona."
Pulling out to a 13-8 advantage, the Lumberjacks' largest lead of the day came off of a three-pointer from Nakai off from an assist by junior
Regan Schenck. Arizona responded with six straight points before Rodabaugh snapped the run with a layup, her fourth basket of the first quarter.
A rough shooting stretch for each side followed, with the teams combining to hit just nine field goals in the second quarter. Nakai's second three-pointer of the game, and a pair of free throws by the debuting
Miki'ala Maio, helped the Lumberjacks remain within six at the break.
For Arizona, All-American guard Aari McDonald finished the opening half just 1-of-7 from the field with three points in addition to three turnovers. While Cate Reese scored 15 points in the first 20 minutes, the rest of the Wildcats combined for just 15 points on 7-of-28 shooting.
It was Schenck who spent a considerable amount of time applying pressure to McDonald, as Payne and the Lumberjacks staff leaned on the junior defensively for the second consecutive game.
"Regan did a heck of a job, that's two games in a row that she was by far the best defender on the court," Payne said. "It's really exciting, Regan is one of the best defenders in our conference and needs to be continually recognized for that. When she gets up and puts pressure on the ball, even against an All-American, you can see what she can do."
Arizona extended its advantage in the third quarter before
Jacey Bailey and Schenck combined to hit a trio of three-pointers across a two-minute stretch to bring NAU within 12 at 55-43.
Bailey put up all 14 of her points in the second half, shooting 5-of-13 from the field, including 3-of-7 from outside. The senior also grabbed eight rebounds, matching Rodabaugh for the team-high, as the Lumberjacks just missed outrebounding the Wildcats with 46 to 48.
"They were obviously keying on her, she is one of our leading scorers from last year," Payne said. "I think her picking up a couple quick fouls early on kind of threw her out of her rhythm a little bit, but once she finds that rhythm, you know she's good for going off for quite a few buckets."
Rodabaugh finished her day with 14 points and eight rebounds, while Nakai led the Lumberjacks with 17 points to go along with four rebounds. Schenck led the Lumberjacks with five assists, three coming on three-pointers made as well as a pair of layups by Maio, who finished with eight points and two rebounds.
"I think she was put in a really tough position, getting cleared and popping right into the starting lineup against the No. 7 team in the country," Payne said. "She handled it with grace and poise, and I am just so excited to see how she continues to progress because the kid can flat out play."
The Lumberjacks will put a pause to non-conference play next week as they head north to face the Eastern Washington Eagles for their Big Sky Conference opener. The schools will face off twice during the weekend, beginning with Thursday's 7 p.m. MST tip.
