Solid First Half Not Enough To Lead Bears Past Vikings
Jan. 18, 2007
GREELEY, Colo. - The University of Northern Colorado women's basketball team shot over 55 percent in the first half against Portland State on Thursday at Butler-Hancock Sports Pavilion, but the Bears couldn't keep the heat on as the Vikings picked up an 81-63 win.
Northern Colorado (3-14, 0-5 Big Sky) was led by senior center Nicole Ford's solid double-double night of 10 points and 13 rebounds. Senior forward Melanie Drangmeister and sophomore guard Whitley Cox paced the Bears in scoring with 14 points each.
Both teams went back and forth in the first half, with Portland State taking its largest lead of the half at 26-19 with 8:29 on the clock. But the Bears stormed back to go on a 9-2 run to tie the score at 28 with 6:31 left to go. Northern Colorado kept the momentum going, moving up by five at 36-31 with 3:11 remaining in the half on a jumper by Cox. But PSU stayed right with the Bears, closing out the half on an 8-2 run to leave the score knotted at 39 going into the locker room. Cox scored 12 of her final point total in the half.
PSU (6-12, 2-3 BSC) exploded in the opening minutes of the second half, opening the half on a 10-0 run to take a 49-39 lead. The Vikings didn't let up on the Bears, going up by as many as 17 before Northern Colorado clawed away at the lead. The Bears went on a 15-5 run to cut the Portland State lead down to 65-58 with 7:51 to go in the game. A 3-pointer by senior guard Bailey Dillon with 6:29 left on the clock pulled Northern Colorado even closer at 67-61.
However, it was the shooting of PSU's Janie Boc and Claire Foucher that forced the Bears into a hole that they couldn't dig out of. The Vikings closed the game out on a 14-2 run over the last 6:13 to seal the contest.
Bos led PSU with a game-high 21 points and 12 rebounds.
Northern Colorado continues its home stand at 2:05 p.m. on Saturday against the Eastern Washington Eagles at Butler-Hancock Sports Pavilion. The game will be broadcast live on 1310-AM KFKA and can be accessed free of charge on UNCBears.com.
