Men’s Basketball Bested by Idaho State, 73-69, to Open Home Weekend

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (January 7, 2021) – Thursday night's script followed a familiar script, one that left the Northern Arizona men's basketball team on the short end once again. The Lumberjacks saw their two-game winning streak end at the hands of Idaho State in the Rolle Activity Center, 73-69, and their Big Sky record even out to 2-2 in the process.
 
Idaho State (5-5, 2-1 Big Sky) outscored NAU, 46-39, in the second half to post its seventh win in the last nine meetings over the 'Jacks and their fourth straight victory in Flagstaff. All four of those wins, like Thursday night's, were by four points or less.
 
"I thought in the first half we played pretty well defensively with a couple of breakdowns in transition," said head coach Shane Burcar. "We got a six-point lead in the second half and next thing you know it, we're down one. We're at game 10 and I need guys who will play hard, do the right thing and our results would be different."
 
NAU (3-7 overall) shot 40.4 percent for the game, including 44.8 percent in the second half, but Idaho State was just a touch better. The Bengals shot 46 percent for the game and rode a strong second half from the field (52.2 percent) to the narrow victory.
 
After a slow start, the Lumberjacks surged ahead with an 11-0 run with four different players scoring to take a 14-9 lead with 11:23 left in the first half. However, the Bengals immediately responded with a 9-0 run themselves. The pendulum once again swung in NAU's favor as sophomore Isaiah Lewis initiated a second 11-0 run with a corner three.
 
By the end of the Lumberjacks' run, they held a 25-18 lead – their largest of the game – with just over five minutes remaining in the first half. Idaho State would close to 30-27 before halftime with junior Cameron Shelton leading a balanced scoring effort at the break with seven points.
 
Redshirt junior Nik Mains' three opened up NAU's advantage to 38-33 just two and a half minutes into the second period, and the Lumberjacks maintained a slim edge until the Bengals moved in front for good at the 12:39 mark.
 
Idaho State took advantage of a five-minute NAU scoring drought with a 9-0 run that was broken by consecutive buckets from Shelton and Mains to cut the Bengal lead to 53-49. After Idaho State pushed its lead back out to eight points, Shelton brought NAU within 63-62 with 1:11 left on the clock.
 
The 'Jacks were unable to climb over the top though with the Bengals keeping them at bay by shooting 8-of-10 at the free throw line the rest of the way following Shelton's bucket. Idaho State shot an exceptional 22-of-26 at the charity stripe on Thursday for a seven-point advantage on free throws despite an impressive performance by NAU as well at 15-of-17.
 
Shelton scored 17 of his game-high 24 points in the second half and finished with six rebounds and six assists as well. Mains also did the bulk of his scoring in the second half, posting 10 of his 15 points after halftime.
 
Redshirt freshman Keith Haymon continued his hot streak behind the arc, connecting on 3-of-7 from behind the arc to account for his nine points. In just 16 minutes, redshirt freshman Carson Towt recorded eight points and five rebounds, while sophomore Ajang Aguek grabbed a team-best and career-high tying seven boards – five on the offensive end.
 
Although the Lumberjacks tallied one more offensive rebound (12), than the Bengals (11), Idaho State made the most of its extra opportunities outscoring NAU, 13-6, on second chance points. Idaho State finished the evening with a 35-31 advantage on the glass.
 
NAU will aim for the weekend split with a rematch against Idaho State on Saturday at 12 p.m. in the Rolle Activity Center.
 
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