FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (Jan. 25, 2025) – The Northern Arizona women's basketball team put up its highest offensive output of the season against Idaho, winning by a score of 106-76 at Findlay Toyota Court on Saturday afternoon. The offensive output is just the second time in program history that NAU has scored over 100 points in a regulation Big Sky Conference game and the first since 2002.
The Lumberjacks drained 17 three-pointers for a single-game NAU record and had eight blocks in the victory, shooting over 53 percent from the field and three-point range.
Idaho allows the second-least amount of points in the Big Sky Conference at 58.4 per game, including 61.3 during conference play, allowing opponents to shoot at just a 35.1 percent clip before today. The two squads came in with identical program records and the Vandals had won six-straight heading into today, now dropping to 14-5 and 6-2 in Big Sky play.
Northern Arizona wins its seventh-straight over Idaho and the fourth-straight in Flagstaff, improving to 16-5 overall and 7-1 in Big Sky play.
Every player who checked in for NAU found the scoring column.
Sophie Glancey, an Idaho native, led all players with 28 points – making 12-of-20 from the field, 2-for-2 from three-point range and 2-for-2 from the free throw line. She also added a career-high five blocks, seven rebounds, three assists and two steals.
Nyah Moran followed with 18 points, making a career-high 5-of-9 from three-point range and 6-of-10 from the field.
Audrey Taylor scored 14 points off the bench for a career-high against Division I opponents. She also dished a team-high four assists and didn't miss, going 4-for-4 from the field, 2-for-2 from three-point range, and 4-for-4 at the charity stripe.
Olivia Moran rounded things out with 10 points.
NAU made 51.5 percent (17-33) from three-point range and shot 53.8 percent (35-65) from the field, also shooting 86.4 percent from the free throw line. It only committed 10 turnovers but forced 13 that were turned in for 22 points. The Lumberjacks scored 32 points in the paint, and the bench added 37 points.
"Obviously, a great offensive performance by our team today. You have days where the ball is going in the hole, and it definitely was today. We knew that one of these games were going to happen and hopefully we can replicate that moving forward. It's not always like that, but I feel like we executed really well offensively," said head coach
Loree Payne. "Defensively, I thought we were really dialed in. It was great overall performance by our team, the absolute best that we've had all year."
Northern Arizona trailed 5-2 in the early goings before a 7-0 run helped it settle in and lead 9-5, holding Idaho without a field goal for three minutes. By the midway part, NAU led 16-14 before the game moved into an 18-18 tie with 3:13 left in the first.
Nyah Moran would hit a three-pointer to help NAU lead by four, taking a 29-25 advantage into the first quarter.
NAU shot the lights out in the second quarter, shooting 58.8 percent from the field while holding the Vandals to 38.5 percent, outscoring UI 27-to-17 during the frame. With 4:24 left to play in the second, NAU led 42-36 before the offense really started to open up. During the second, a 12-0 run helped NAU pull ahead 54-36. The Vandals tried to trim some of the deficit off, closing on a 6-2 run, but it wasn't enough to catch NAU who led 56-42 at the half.
The offense did not let up to start the second half, as NAU exploded on a 15-4 run to start the third.
Nyah Moran contributed with eight points, while Glancey added four, as the Lumberjacks made seven of their first 10 attempts from the field to lead 73-48 by the midway point of the third frame. Down the stretch, another 7-0 run gave NAU an 83-59 advantage heading into the fourth.
Things got a little shaky for the Lumberjacks in the first part of the fourth quarter, as the squad reached the bonus just two minutes into the frame. The Vandals made just four field goals during the fourth but were 8-of-12 from the free throw line. NAU wouldn't allow the Vandals to get close, holding its largest lead of 30 points at the 6:36 mark. Although it was the lowest shooting percentage of the game, the Lumberjacks still outscored UI 23-17 in the fourth quarter thanks to an 11-for-14 performance the free throw line.
Northern Arizona returns to Findlay Toyota Court on Saturday, Feb. 1 to host Northern Colorado at 2 p.m. Mountain Standard time.
