Lumberjacks Cruise to 56-Point Victory Over Benedictine Mesa

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (November 15, 2022) - In the win column for the first time this season, the Northern Arizona University men's basketball team opened its home slate with a 105-49 win tonight over Benedictine Mesa at the Rolle Activity Center. With the win, NAU improves to 1-3 overall on the year.
 
Six players scored in double figures for the first time since December 30, 2009, against Northern New Mexico. The 'Jacks were led by Carson Towt with his first double-double of the season with 18 points and 14 rebounds. It was his second-straight double-digit rebound performance, and he was also 8-of-12 from the field with two assists.
 
True freshman Oakland Fort, playing in just his fourth career game, scored a career-high 15 points and led the team with seven assists off the bench. He was 5-for-8 from the field and a perfect 3-for-3 from behind the arc.
 
Joining Towt and Fort in the double-digit scoring column was Keith Haymon (14 points), Liam Lloyd (13 points), Nik Mains (12 points) and Jack Wistrcill (11 points, 8 rebounds).
 
"The most encouraging part of tonight's game was that we came out and we did what we were supposed to do. There were many good stats tonight, but the one I really like is that we only had seven turnovers. To only have seven turnovers in a high-possession game where you score 105 points, that says a lot about our guys and how unselfish they are," said head coach Shane Burcar. "Jalen Cone only shot three times, now, we told him to never do that again, but the great thing about Jalen is that he didn't care. The theme for tonight's game was to play NAU basketball. That is defined in many ways when we talk about our effort, toughness, and attitude. We did what we were supposed to do. We only had 10 players tonight with a few out sick, but we played very well with six players in double figures. That tells you a lot about our team."
 
The Lumberjacks shot 51.3 percent from the field (39-76) and held the Redhawks to 29.8 percent (17-57) overall. NAU was also 12-for-29 from three-point range (41.4%) and made 71.4 percent of its free throw attempts. They crashed the boards, out-rebounding Benedictine Mesa 56-to-29. Twenty of their 39 field goal attempts were assisted, and they only turned the ball over seven times. The Lumberjacks also added 56 points off the bench.
 
Northern Arizona came out in the first half and made its first three shots from the field for a 7-0 lead. The Lumberjacks did not allow the Redhawks to attempt a shot from the field until the 15:54 mark of the first half. Halfway through the first half, the 'Jacks led 28-14. They closed the half on an 11-0 run and would wind up shooting 55.3 percent during the period with seven three-pointers, leading 57-23 at the break.
 
NAU picked up where it left off to start the second half, opening on an 11-0 run to lead 70-23. In all, the Lumberjacks rattled off 24-unanswered points. The Lumberjacks continued to cruise, stringing together runs of 8-0 and 5-0 down the stretch. The second half saw them limit the Redhawks to just 9-of-32 (28.1%) from the field while shooting 47.4 percent themselves in route to the 105-36 victory.
 
The Lumberjacks look to keep their winning ways going when they return to the Rolle Activity Center on Friday, Nov. 17 at 6 p.m. to host UC Santa Barbara, the 2021-22 Big West Tournament Champions. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+.
 
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