Women's Basketball Closes Out Home Schedule With Loss to Montana
Feb. 24, 2007
GREELEY, Colo. - In the final home game of the season, the University of Northern Colorado women's basketball team showed its fans the progress they have made under Head Coach Jaime White.
While the outcome of the game was a loss, 74-56, to the University of Montana (26-2, 14-1), the way the Bears battled with the Big Sky Conference regular-season winners showed that success is not far away.
Northern Colorado fell to the Grizzlies 85-54 January 27 in Missoula.
On Saturday, the Bears (5-22, 2-12) fell behind by six points early in the game, but battled back and took a 19-18 lead with 5:31 left in the first half on a Heather Barbour three-pointer.
From there, Montana ended the half on a 15-3 run to take a 33-22 at the break.
Northern Colorado shot 28 percent (7-of-25) from the field in the first half, while the Grizzlies checked in at 44.8 percent (13-of-29).
Amy Martinson got the Bears back within seven points at 40-33 just shy of five minutes into the second half, but the Grizzlies responded with another run, this time an 18-5 push, to pull away.
"It would have been nice to be a spoiler," said White after the game. But "its a good ending to our year."
Heather Barbour scored a game-high 24 points for the Bears, and is now just 25 away from eclipsing the 1000-point mark for her career.
Whitley Cox added 13 points and seven rebounds for the Bears, while Nicole Ford added six points and a team-high eight rebounds.
Before the game, Barbour and Ford, as well as fellow seniors Bailey Dillon and Melanie Drangmeister were honored on Senior Night. All four started, and left to a standing ovation with 35 seconds left.
The Bears now hit the road for their final two games this season. They face off with Eastern Washington on Thursday, March 1 at 8:05 p.m. MST.
