ABILENE, Texas (December 6, 2023) – NAU Basketball Earns Second-Straight victory of the season over Abilene Christian, 78-76, marking the first time in program history and evening the series at 1-1.
The Jacks took a 6-0 start through the first three minutes of play, with the Cats first points of the night coming at the line from Hunter Madden sinking two. By the first media timeout, ACU went 0-9 from the field, only scoring at the line while
Jayden Jackson led NAU with four, adding four boards himself early on.
The Cats worked their way back into rhythm, going on a 10-0 run to take the lead at 17-14 with 10 minutes remaining in the half as the Jacks committed their fifth turnover of the night.
Trent McLaughlin ended the Cats run, followed by a forced turnover from
C.J. Ford to give NAU some momentum back.
With five minutes to play in the first half, the Jacks forced a three-minute field goal drought for Abilene Christian while NAU took the four-point lead at 26-22. McLaughlin drained the Jacks first three of the night as
Oakland Fort checked back in and quickly found him in the right corner.
ACU took a 7-0 run into the break while closing out the first half shooting 35.5 percent from the field. Despite the Cats going 11-31 from the floor, they took an advantage at the line, hitting 11-of-13. Airion Simmons led ACU through the first 20 minutes, as the only Wildcat in double-digits, with 11 points in 11 minutes on the floor.
McLaughlin led the Jacks with 17 points, going 7-13, and picking up four points at the line as the Lumberjacks shot a perfect 6-6 on free throws for the first time this season. Jackson followed McLaughlin with eight points, adding seven rebounds while limited in minutes with three fouls. The Jacks led the rebound game 23-16. At the half, the Jacks were shooting 45.5 percent from the field, struggling from beyond the arc with 2-13.
The second half took a slow ten-minute start as both teams battled defensively, looking to take a lead. At the under-12 media timeout, things remained tied up at 50-50 while
Carson Basham grabbed a bucket in the paint.
NAU made its way out to a five-point lead, backed by Basham at the line followed by a
Diego Campisano wide-open three shot as Basham found him alone at the top of the arc.
As fouls plagued both teams in the second half, each entered the bonus with over eight minutes on the clock. With the final media timeout, the Jacks took a four-point lead, gaining possession coming out of it with 3:32 remaining. Following, the Cats jumped out on a 6-0 run with two at the line and back-to-back Simmons' layups.
As things came down to the wire, tied 76-76 with 13 seconds remaining, Fort stepped up for the mid-range jumper, falling just short as Campisano grabbed the rebound and the put-back to lift the Jacks to the buzzer-beater 78-76 victory in Abilene.
Four Lumberjacks finished with double-digits with McLaughlin leading the way with 22 points, Fort following with 18, and Jackson and Basham with 10 a piece. The Jacks as a team finished 49.1 percent from the line, 33.3 percent from beyond the arc, and a season-high 80.0 percent from the line. NAU won the rebound battle for the second-consecutive game 44-28.
The Lumberjacks will now head to San Antonio to take on Incarnate Word for the first time in program history. To stay up to date with NAU Basketball, follow the Jacks on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.
