FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (February 22, 2020) – The Northern Arizona women's basketball team held off Eastern Washington for a 63-58 victory on Saturday in the Walkup Skydome behind another double-double performance by junior
Khiarica Rasheed. The Lumberjacks only shot 34.8 percent for the afternoon, but they outrebounded the Eagles by 13 to sweep their homestand.
Rasheed finished with 26 points and 12 rebounds for her sixth double-double, while junior
Jacey Bailey scored 16 points and while connecting on three three-pointers – her fifth straight game with at least three treys. The two 'Jacks helped NAU improve to 15-11 overall and 12-5 in conference despite a six-point first quarter and being outscored by 11 in the fourth.
"It was a tough game for us and we have to be better for 40 minutes if we're going to achieve the things we want to this year," said head coach
Loree Payne. "We've had a really good year so far, but for us we've raised the bar within our program that to perform average is no longer acceptable. We have to understand that our approach to each game has to be like we're playing the top team in the conference."
After misfiring on all seven three-point attempts in the first half, the Lumberjacks made 5-of-10 in the second half to help them build as large of a lead of 16 points after leading by just three, 27-21, at the half. On the other side, the Big Sky's top three-point shooting team in terms of makes was just 2-for-19 behind the arc.
NAU's performance on the glass was pivotal in the Lumberjacks notching their 12th conference win, now officially the second-most in a season in program history, as the 'Jacks outrebounded the Eagles by a 48-30 margin. Eighteen of NAU's boards came on the offensive glass – with Rasheed recording seven of them – leading to a 20-8 second chance points advantage.
Rasheed, who jumped three spots on NAU's all-time scoring list to 14th on Saturday, was one of five Lumberjacks with six rebounds or more with Bailey, redshirt sophomore
Nina Radford, senior
Peyton Carroll and sophomore
Regan Schenck each pulling down six boards.
The Lumberjacks got off to a slow start as NAU made just one of its first 10 attempts from the floor. The 'Jacks were just 3-of-17 in the first quarter in all as the Eagles led 12-6 at the end of the period. The six points were a first quarter season-low.
NAU's offense picked up in the second quarter, particularly over a six-minute stretch when the Lumberjacks went on a 15-2 run to turn a 16-12 deficit into a 27-19 lead with under a minute to play before the half. Rasheed scored all 10 of her first half points during the run, moving the Lumberjacks in front for good.
Although NAU led for all of the second half, it got a little close despite the 'Jacks opening up a 16-point third quarter lead. Rasheed and Bailey were thorns to Eastern Washington's side in the third period, combining for 20 of NAU's 22 points. The Lumberjacks took a 49-33 advantage into the fourth quarter and still held a 16-point lead, 60-44, with 4:19 remaining in the game following Bailey's third three-pointer.
However, that would be NAU's final field goal of the game as the Lumberjacks missed their final five from the field. Meanwhile, Eastern Washington went on a 10-0 run to make it a 60-54 game with 32 seconds left prior to Radford's two free throws which allowed NAU to stop the Eagle run and hold off the visitor's late charge.
"It was frustrating, but we tried not to get overwhelmed," Rasheed said. "I think we did a good job of staying together, but we need to up our intensity. We talk about it all the time because we all want to win a championship."
Despite their offensive struggles, NAU still managed to record 19 assists on 23 field goals. Radford led the team with six assists, while redshirt junior
Caitlin Malvar totaled five. In all, the entire starting five each posted multiple assists.
The Lumberjacks will head out on their final conference road trip next week, and it will be a challenging one, to Montana and Montana State on Thursday and Saturday. Montana is currently tied for fifth in the conference while Montana State has won 11 straight and clinched at least a share of the Big Sky regular season title.
