| Northern Arizona Women's Basketball |
| GAME 11 |
Northern Arizona at Southern Utah (Thursday, Dec. 21 | 2 p.m. MST) |
| FOLLOW |
ESPN+ | Live Stats |
| LOCATION |
Cedar City, Utah | America First Event Center |
| GAME NOTES |
Northern Arizona |
FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (Dec. 20, 2023) – With the best start in program history on the line, the Northern Arizona University women's basketball team will meet up with former Big Sky Conference foe Southern Utah on Thursday, Dec. 21. Tipoff is set for 2 p.m. Mountain Standard time at the America First Event Center in Cedar City, Utah.
A LOOK AT THE LUMBERJACKS: Northern Arizona enters Thursday's contest 7-3 overall on the year, tying the program's best 10-game start in NAU history. The Lumberjacks join the 2002-03, 1995-96, 1994-95 and 1985-86 squads who have also started the year 7-3. A win over Southern Utah on Thursday would give NAU it's best-ever 11 game start in program history.
The Lumberjacks have won three-straight games and seven out of their last eight. After starting out the season 0-2, Northern Arizona has now won five-straight games away from Flagstaff.
Northern Arizona leads the Big Sky with 75.4 points per game and have scored over 80 points in three-straight games and four times overall this season. Since 2018-19, NAU is 41-3 when scoring 80 points or more including a perfect 4-0 this season.
NAU picked up the programs first-ever win at Pepperdine on Monday afternoon, improving to 4-0 against West Coast Conference opponents this season. Senior
Grace Beasley scored a career-high 21 points and grabbed a career-best eight rebounds to go with five assists in the win, earning her first career Big Sky Player of the Week award on Tuesday, which is also the first for the Lumberjacks this season.
Beasley ranks sixth in the Big Sky with a team-high 3.3 assists per game and is also fifth in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.1).
Sophomore
Sophie Glancey continues to lead NAU with 12.7 points per game. She has scored in double figures in seven-straight game and has earned a double-double in back-to-back games. Glancey ranks 66
th nationally and second in the conference in field goal percentage, draining 54.2 percent (52-96) of her attempts from the field. Glancey ranks eighth in the conference in scoring and ninth in rebounding with a team-high 6.5 per game. She is also eighth in the Big Sky with 1.6 blocks per game to lead NAU.
Fifth-year senior
Emily Rodabaugh moved up to ninth all-time on NAU's all-time scoring list with 1,113 points after a 10-point performance at Pepperdine. She broke Northern Arizona's all-time three-pointers made record on Dec. 9 at San Francisco and now has 198 in her career. Rodabaugh is sixth in the Big Sky in three-point percentage (23-61, 37.7%) and averages 2.3 makes per game which is fourth.
Rodabaugh is also a solid free throw shooter, making 86.2 percent from the line which is the second-best in the Big Sky and ranks 67
th nationally. She has made 16-straight free throws heading into Thursday, and is averaging 11.4 points and 5.1 rebounds per game.
The other Lumberjack to average double figures is
Leia Beattie with 11.0 points, 4.8 rebounds, 2.5 assists and a team-high 1.9 steals per game. Beattie has made a three-pointer in nine-straight games and averages 1.7 triples per game.
As a team, NAU averages 7.9 three-pointers per game and make 42.3 percent of their attempts from the field. The Lumberjacks also force 17.4 turnovers per game while averaging 39.1 rebounds, 16.6 assist and 3.60 blocks per contest.
SERIES HISTORY WITH SOUTHERN UTAH: The Lumberjacks and the Thunderbirds are no strangers to each other as they were both members of the Big Sky Conference until Southern Utah's exit nearly two years ago. Thursday marks the 47
th all-time meeting between the two dating back to 1981 with Northern Arizona holding the 26-20 advantage.
Last season, NAU defeated SUU 76-65 in Flagstaff with Glancey and Rodabaugh scoring in double figures with seven rebounds each and
Nyah Moran added nine points. Prior to the win, the Lumberjacks had lost three-straight to Southern Utah and NAU will be looking for its first win in Cedar City since the 2018-19 season, dropping three-straight.
A LOOK AT THE THUNDERBIRDS: Southern Utah is coming off a 96-60 loss to Utah on Dec. 16 and is 3-6 on the year including a 1-1 mark in Western Athletic Conference play. It has played one other Big Sky Conference school in Eastern Washington to open the season, losing 77-86.
Three Thunderbirds score in double figures, led by Megan Smith with 16.8 points per game. Smith also adds a team-high 6.4 boards and 1.8 blocks per game. Daylani Ballena (15.0 ppg) and Ava Uhrich (12.0 ppg) round out the scoring, while Samantha Johnston and Ballena add a team-best 3.3 assists per game.
As a team, SUU averages 67.3 points per game and 37.2 rebounds per game. The Thunderbirds have taken 199 three-point attempts this year and average 5.3 makes per game while adding 4.0 blocks.
LAST TIME OUT: The Northern Arizona University women's basketball team returned to the court for the first time in nine days on Monday, taking on Pepperdine at the Firestone Fieldhouse in Malibu, Calif. The Lumberjacks picked up their third-straight victory and fourth over a West Coast Conference opponent this season with an 80-62 victory.
An 18-2 run in the first half gave Northern Arizona a 49-34 lead at the break which was nearly erased in the third quarter as the Waves cut the lead down to five points. The Lumberjacks exploded for a 14-0 run in the fourth quarter to keep Pepperdine away as four players scored in double figures, led by
Grace Beasley with a career-high 21 points and
Sophie Glancey's second-straight double-double of 13 points and 13 rebounds.
Beasley also contributed with a career-high eight rebounds and a team-high five assists.
Leia Beattie made 7-of-9 from the field and 3-for-3 from three-point range to add 19 points, while
Emily Rodabaugh finished things out with 10.
Northern Arizona shot 44.3 percent (27-61) from the field and 47.1 percent (8-17) from three-point range. The Waves were just 23-for-55 (41.8%) from the field, made three three-pointers, and shot 65 percent from the free throw line. NAU won the rebounding battle, 39-to-29, with 12 offensive rebounds, outscoring the Waves 15-to-3 in second chance opportunities.
UP NEXT: Northern Arizona returns to Flagstaff for the first time since Dec. 6 when it takes on Northern Colorado for its Big Sky Conference opener. Tipoff is set for 2 p.m. Mountain Standard time at Findlay Toyota Court inside the J. Lawrence Walkup Skydome on Saturday, Dec. 30.
The Lumberjacks swept the Bears last season, including an overtime victory on the road and a win in the Big Sky Conference quarterfinals.
