FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (Feb. 17, 2024) – The Northern Arizona University women's basketball team returned to the win column with an 89-73 victory over Portland State this afternoon at Findlay Toyota Court.
Five players scored in double figures for the Lumberjacks, who improve to 19-7 and 11-2 in Big Sky Conference play. Northern Arizona earned the season series sweep over the Vikings, who dropped to 6-20 and 1-13.
Sophie Glancey, the reigning Big Sky Player of the Week, led the Lumberjacks with 21 points and nine rebounds, making 8-of-17 from the field and 5-for-5 from the free throw line with two blocks.
Emily Rodabaugh, who missed Thursday's game, returned to add 18 points for NAU with three triples on 6-of-11 from the field.
Leia Beattie earned her 1,000
th career point between Montana State and Northern Arizona to end the day with 15 points, four assists and a team-high four steals.
Nyah Moran made 5-of-9 from the field to add 13 points, while
Taylor Feldman finished with 12 points and a career-high nine assists to go with no turnovers.
Northern Arizona led from start to finish as both teams shot over 50 percent from the field. NAU made 32-of-63 while the Vikings were 27-for-53. The Vikings were also 11-for-23 from three-point range and 8-for-10 from the line, while the Lumberjacks were 10-for-24 from a distance and 15-for-18 at the charity stripe.
With NAU winning the rebounding battle 29-to-28, the difference would be turnovers. Northern Arizona forced 21 turnovers and scored 29 points off them while only turning the ball over eight times themselves. NAU also had 13 second chance points compared to seven for the Vikings.
"I'm proud of the team for our bounce-back after a rough one on Thursday. We were able to refine some things and refocus, and I'm proud of our effort offensively and defensively," said head coach
Loree Payne. "Portland State put together a pretty good game. I think that was probably the best they played in a while, having watched film. They're trying to figure it out and that's a scary team to play, we found that out on Thursday. I'm proud of our team, we put together some things and we really grew a lot in different areas. We're excited about a big road trip coming up."
The Lumberjack defense didn't allow Portland State to find the scoreboard until the 7:01 mark, and Beattie's 1,000
th career point put NAU up 6-2. A 7-0 run out of the media timeout was capped by a three-pointer by
Saniyah Neverson for an 11-2 lead. Northern Arizona didn't let up, as
Olivia Moran, Rodabaugh, and
Nyah Moran all scored in another 7-0 run, allowing NAU to lead 18-5 after the first quarter.
All eight NAU field goals in the first quarter were assisted, as the Lumberjacks shot 50 percent (8-16) from the field and held the Vikings to 20 percent (2-10) while forcing six turnovers.
The run carried into the second quarter, extending out to 11-0 after an old-fashioned three-point play by Glancey. Northern Arizona entered a cold spell and didn't score for 2:21 of the quarter, allowing PSU to go on a quick 5-0 run before a
Nyah Moran triple put the 'Jacks back up 25-10. Portland State started to heat up, making 5-of-5 from the field down the stretch to cut the lead to 36-26 with under three minutes to play. However, NAU hit 3-of-3 for another 7-0 run in less than a minute, extending the advantage out to 43-26. At the half, Northern Arizona led 43-29.
Northern Arizona went into the locker room shooting 50 percent (16-32) from the field while the Vikings were 9-of-21 (43%). Both teams were 6-of-8 from the free throw line with five three-pointers, and NAU had the 17-to-12 edge on rebounding. The Lumberjacks also scored 17 points off 11 PSU turnovers.
Out of the half, Portland State made 4-of-5 from the field early to trim the lead down to 10 points once again, 55-45. Glancey scored 10 third quarter points to help NAU keep the lead, 67-54, heading into the fourth despite Portland State shooting 57.9 percent from the field in the third and outscoring the Lumberjacks, 25-24.
With 7:38 left in the game, Portland State trimmed the lead down to single digits, 72-63. Four different players then scored in an 8-0 run for the Lumberjacks, pushing the lead out to 80-65. In all, the run exploded out to 13-2 over the last 4:11 of the game. The Lumberjacks saved their best quarter for last, shooting 66.7 percent (8-12) from the field to hold off the Vikings who shot 53.8 percent.
Northern Arizona heads out on its last two-game regular season road trip next week, first taking on Eastern Washington in a huge matchup in Cheney, Wash., on Feb. 22 before taking on Idaho in Moscow, Idaho.
