FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (January 2, 2025) – Northern Arizona Basketball suffered a tough five-point loss to open Big Sky Conference play, dropping the first contest to the Idaho State Bengals on Thursday evening.
In seemingly what would end in a tale of two halves, the Jacks came out hot to start as
Ali Ragab took his second start of the season quickly picking up three rebounds as NAU held the Bengals to a 2-of-5 start. With 12:09 to play in the half, Northern Arizona jumped out on a four-minute 10-0 run, giving NAU a 16-point lead. By the under-eight media timeout, the Lumberjacks were shooting 66.7 percent on nine three-point attempts.
Northern Arizona's
Monty Bowser led the Jacks through the first frame, alongside
Jayden Jackson, with 11 points, hitting 3-4 from three-point range. Jackson's 11 came off two shots from beyond the arc, in addition to a perfect 4-4 from the field. NAU closed out the half shooting 53.8 percent from beyond the arc, holding the Bengals to 32.3 percent shooting overall.
Continuing off first half momentum, Bowser quickly hits his fourth three-shot of the night followed up by a
Jack Wistrcill three-pointer as NAU started the second frame on an 8-0 run, holding ISU scoreless for five possessions. With 13:32 to play, a layup from
Trent McLaughlin would bring NAU its largest lead of the night at 19.
The Lumberjacks then went scoreless from the field for the final seven-and-a-half minutes, as Idaho State put up 21 points to complete the victory in Flagstaff.
Carson Towt grabbed his 10
th double-double of the performance while leading NAU with 16 points and 12 boards. Jackson finished with 15, four rebounds, and three assists while Bowser closed out with 14 points and three rebounds.
NAU Basketball will quickly turn the page to host the Weber State Wildcats (6-9, 0-1 Big Sky) on Saturday at 2 p.m. MST. To stay up to date with NAU Basketball, follow the Jacks on X, Instagram, and Facebook.
