FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (Dec. 18, 2024) – As the non-conference portion of the season winds down, the Northern Arizona women's basketball team is traveling to Fresno, Calif., for a contest at Fresno State on Thursday night at the Save Mart Center. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. Mountain Standard time on the Mountain West Network.
The Lumberjacks have won eight out of their last nine games and are 9-2 on the year, the best start in program history. In a win over San Francisco on Saturday afternoon, eighth-year head coach
Loree Payne became the program's all-time winningest coach with her 118
th victory, passing Laurie Kelly who had 117 from 2003-12.
There was plenty to celebrate, as
Sophie Glancey also joined NAU's 1,000 career point club in her 80
th career game at Northern Arizona. Six players scored in double figures in the 92-83 win, where the Lumberjacks led for 38:56 of the contest.
Nyah Moran led the way with 18 points and
Taylor Feldman followed closely behind with 17 points.
Both Glancey and
Leia Beattie scored 12 points, followed by
Olivia Moran who finished with 11 points and six rebounds.
Saniyah Neverson rounded out the scoring with a 10-point performance, also adding a team-high seven boards. NAU shot 45.5 percent (30-66) from the field and won the rebounding battle, 41-36 and forced 19 turnovers that turned into 25 points.
Northern Arizona is undefeated at home and is 8-0 this season when scoring 80 or more points. This week, NAU checked in at No. 13 in the College Insider Mid-Major top 25 for its fourth-straight week in the top 15. They are also ranked 78
th in the NCAA Net Rankings.
Glancey has seven double-doubles on the year, ranking fifth in the nation. She leads the Big Sky with 17.3 points per game, scoring in double figures in 19-straight games dating back to last season. The junior ranks second in the league in blocks per game (2.1) and rebounds (8.9) while ranking third in field goal percentage (50.7%).
In fact, NAU has three of the Big Sky's top five scorers, as
Nyah Moran ranks second behind Glancey with 16.0 points per game and Feldman ranks fourth with 15.5.
Nyah Moran has scored in double figures in nine-straight games and is shooting 45.6 percent from the field to rank fourth in the conference while Feldman ranks fifth in the league with 4.0 assists per game.
Beattie adds 11.2 points per game which is fifth in the conference. She ranks 24
th in the nation and leads the Big Sky with 30 three-pointers on the year, good for 2.7 per game. Beattie also leads the team in assists, dishing 4.5 per contest which is third in the Big Sky.
Olivia Moran rounds things out with 9.1 points per game and is just 17 points away from joining NAU's 1,000 career point club.
Saniyah Neverson grabs 8.8 rebounds per game.
As a team, the Lumberjacks lead the league with 84.2 points per game but allow the most points in the Big Sky with 77.2. They also lead the Big Sky in three-pointers per game (8.9), are second in rebounding (44.8) and first in assist/turnover ratio (1.21), dishing a league-high 17.18 assists per game.
Northern Arizona is 2-1 against Mountain West opponents this season. The Lumberjacks knocked off New Mexico on Glancey's game-winner to open the season for the first win in The Pit since 1994-95. After dropping to UNLV on the road, NAU bounced back with an 84-80 victory at Colorado State.
Thursday is the seventh all-time meeting between the two foes and the first since 2022-23. Fresno State leads the all-time series, 4-3 and have won two-straight, both at the Save Mart Center. In Fresno, the Lumberjacks are 1-3 and haven't won in Fresno since 2000-01. In 2022-23, the Bulldogs came away with a 68-63 decision at home over the Lumberjacks.
Fresno State is 8-4 on the year with a 6-1 mark at home. The Bulldogs are coming off a 65-46 victory over CSU Bakersfield on Saturday. Fresno State is led by Mia Jacobs who ranks second nationally with eight double-doubles on the year. She ranks sixth in the country with 122 total boards and averages 18.0 points per game. Like Northern Arizona, FSU likes to shoot from three-point range, ranking 26
th in the country with 8.8 three-pointers per game. It also ranks 46
th with 25.2 three-point attempts and 55
th in three-point percentage (35.1%).
Following Thursday's game, Northern Arizona breaks for the holidays and will resume action on Sunday, Dec. 29 at Grand Canyon to close non-conference play. Tipoff is set for 2 p.m. Mountain Standard time.
