University of Northern Colorado Athletics
Thursday, January 21
Greeley, Colo.
7:00 pm
University of Northern Colorado
vs
Southern Utah
Returning Home, @UNCBearsWBB Looks to Return to Winning Ways
1/19/2016 2:36:00 PM | Women's Basketball
NOrthenr Colorado women's basketball looks to get back in the left column when they host Southern Utah Thursday night.
GREELEY, Colo.—Northern Colorado women's basketball returns to Bank of Colorado Arena Thursday night, and is looking to also return to its winning ways. The Bears (7-9, 2-4 Big Sky) host Southern Utah (2-13, 0-5 Big Sky).
For all the information on the game, visit GameDay Central.
Game Notes: Northern Colorado | Southern Utah | Big Sky
The Matchup
Both Southern Utah and Northern Colorado come into Thursday night's game looking to move up the Big Sky standings.
UNC is coming off a tough road trip through Montana in which the team went 0-2. The Bears were unable to challenge the Griz of Montana, but fought back against league leader Montana State falling just short.
Southern Utah is looking for its first conference win of the season, just missing out vs Eastern Washington 85-82.
Scouting the Thunderbirds
Southern Utah comes into Greeley Thursday night still seeking its first Big Sky win of the season. They are currently 2-13 overall on the season and 0-5 in the Big Sky.
Jessica Richardson is SUU's go-to player, averaging 12.9 points a game and also leading the team in rebounds, grabbing 8.1 a game.
Richardson's 12.8 ppg ranks her 13th in the conference in scoring. She is tied for fourth in rebounds.
Last week the T-Birds hosted Eastern Washington and Idaho, they just missed out on a win against EWU, 85-82 and fell by double figures to Idaho 62-51.
Southern Utah has struggled scoring at times this season averaging 56.9 points a game which ranks last in the Big Sky.
Coming into the season under second year head coach Chris Boettcher the Thunderbirds were picked to finish 11th by both the media and coaches.
Last Time Against Southern Utah
Kourteney Zadina had a career high 22 points, hitting on 6-of-9 3-pointers to help lead Northern Colorado to an 88-66 victory.
Zadina was one of five UNC players to score in double digits in the game, joined by Stephanie Lee (13), Kyleigh Hiser (12), D'shara Strange (11) and Savannah Scott (10).
In the game UNC shot 53.6 percent to 39.6 percent from Southern Utah. (Full Recap)
Last Time Out
The Bears were in an early hole vs Montana State last Saturday, but battled back in the second half. After trailing by as much as15 during the first half, UNC cut the MSU lead to one with around 5:00 left in the game. Katie Longwell hit four shots from downtown to lead the Bears with 12 points in the 66-58 lose.
Against the Big Sky
UNC is 96-120 all-time against Big Sky opponents. Since joining the conference in the 2006-07 season, the Bears are 86-84 all-time. Last season the Bears went 12-6 in the conference to finish third.
On This Date
The Bears hold a 6-4 record all-time on January 21, including going 6-2 at home. Even with the winning record on the date, UNC is currently on a four-game losing streak, dating back to 1999. The last time Northern Colorado played on the date was in 2012 at home losing a nail-bitter vs Montana State 52-51.
Month of January
Northern Colorado is just a bit below .500 in the first month of a new year. The Bears have accumulated a 174-179 mark in January. Under current head coach Kamie Ethridge the team is 6-8.
Finding Her Spot
Freshman forward Courtney Smith has grown into her role for the Bears this year. Over the past three games she has played some valuable minutes for the team. In those games she is averaging 12 minutes and 5.7 points helping give front court mate a break.
Road Woes
UNC has struggled on the road this season going 1-7 in true road games. The Bears are averaging 54.6 points a game way from Bank of Colorado Arena and allowing opponents to score 62.2. In the team's first seven road games, opponents have outshot UNC .434-to-.374.
Comeback Week
The Bears had a pair of comeback victories two weeks ago, inside Bank of Colorado Arena. On Thursday night UNC recorded its second largest come-from-behind win in the programs DI history vs Idaho State. The 14 points were four shy of the record. On February 2, 2012 UNC trailed by 18 in the first half vs Sacramento State, but came storming back to win 64-56. Kourteney Zadina hit the game winning shot with 1.9 seconds left.
On Saturday it was another double digit comeback for Northern Colorado, this one of the 12 point flavor. After leading the majority of the game and even by 11 points at one points the Bears ended up down 12 to Weber State early in the fourth quarter. Savannah Scott hit the game-winning jumper as time expired to give UNC the 65-63 win and cap off a 19-5 run during the final 7:02 of play.
Finding Their Roles
Northern Colorado seems to be settling into its roles on the team as conference play has started. While Kourteney Zadina and Kyleigh Hiser are looked at as sharp shooters, Savannah Scott and Kianna Williams have stepped up as stat sheet stuffers. Another couple roles that have been well defined for the team are the solid inside presence of Rebecca Howell and Courtney Smith on both ends of the court.
D-D-D-Defense
The Bears has really stepped it up defensively as Big Sky play has started. In the team's first five Big Sky games, Northern Colorado is holding teams to just 58.6 points a game.
UNC put the clamps down on defense last Thursday night in the second half. For the half the Bears made a stop on 24 of Idaho State's 31 possessions. They also held ISU to just two points in the third quarter and 1-of-12 shooting. The Bengals were held scoreless for an 11:06 period allowing UNC to come back and take a seven point lead.
Against Montana State defense once again proved to be important in UNC's comeback attempt. In the third quarter of the game, the Bears held the Bobcats to just 2-13 shooting and six points overall.
Kiwi Stuffing the Stat Sheet
Kianna Williams has taken off in her sophomore season doing it all for the Bears. She ranks fourth on the team in scoring (7.7 ppg), second in assists (2.5 apg), first in rebounds (4.5 rpg) and first in steals (1.8 spg).
Swaggy Z Hitting Her Stride
Kourteney "Swaggy Z" Zadina had a slower than usual start to the season, but has turned it on since Thanksgiving. In UNC's games post-Thanksgiving she is averaging 11.7 points a game, shooting 41.4 percent and 37.7 percent from 3-point land. In Big Sky games she is the team leader averaging 12.0 points on 39.5 percent shooting and hitting 35.3 percent of her 3-pointers.
70 is the Mark
Coach Ethridge always preaches to her team that if they score 70 points they are in a good position to win. This season that has happened in four of the teams seven wins.
From Downtown
The Bears have been feeling it from behind the arc this season averaging 8.4 made threes a game. That ranks tied for 18th best in the nation, but only third best in the Big Sky. Both Idaho (3rd) and Sacramento State (1st) are ahead of UNC.
Stuck Like Glue
After the game against South Dakota State, Kamie Ethridge called Savannah Scott, "the glue that keeps the team together." Scott has had a strong start to her sophomore season. She has stuffed the stat sheet with her play averaging 10.2 points, 4.4 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.7 steals a game.
Valuing The Ball
Once again this year UNC is valuing the rock, and forcing teams into turnovers. They rank 26th in the country and second in the Big Sky with a 1.19 assist-turnover ratio.
Youth Is Served
With the graduation of four key seniors from last year, youth will definitely be a big part of the team this season. So far, 49.4 percent of the team's scoring is coming from underclassmen and 43.0 percent of the rebounds.
RPI Report
UNC is ranked 161 as of 1/19, second best in the Big Sky. Idaho is the highest at 118.
What's On Deck?
Northern Colorado continues its short home stand when they host Northern Arizona on Saturday at 2 p.m.
Around The Den
Men's basketball looks to move up the Big Sky standings when they hit the road to face Southern Utah and Northern Arizona. Last week they split games against Montana (L, 73-66) and Montana State (W, 78-76).
Track and Field continues its indoor season, heading down to Colorado Springs for a three-day event at the Air Force Academy.
Wrestling closes out its three-game home stand when they host Cal Poly on Friday night. Before the match, USA Wrestling will be hosting the Jack Pinto Cup featuring some of the top wrestlers from the US facing the top wrestlers from around the world.
Swim and Dive heads over to the western slopes to take on Colorado Mesa Friday evening.
For all the information on the game, visit GameDay Central.
Game Notes: Northern Colorado | Southern Utah | Big Sky
The Matchup
Both Southern Utah and Northern Colorado come into Thursday night's game looking to move up the Big Sky standings.
UNC is coming off a tough road trip through Montana in which the team went 0-2. The Bears were unable to challenge the Griz of Montana, but fought back against league leader Montana State falling just short.
Southern Utah is looking for its first conference win of the season, just missing out vs Eastern Washington 85-82.
Scouting the Thunderbirds
Southern Utah comes into Greeley Thursday night still seeking its first Big Sky win of the season. They are currently 2-13 overall on the season and 0-5 in the Big Sky.
Jessica Richardson is SUU's go-to player, averaging 12.9 points a game and also leading the team in rebounds, grabbing 8.1 a game.
Richardson's 12.8 ppg ranks her 13th in the conference in scoring. She is tied for fourth in rebounds.
Last week the T-Birds hosted Eastern Washington and Idaho, they just missed out on a win against EWU, 85-82 and fell by double figures to Idaho 62-51.
Southern Utah has struggled scoring at times this season averaging 56.9 points a game which ranks last in the Big Sky.
Coming into the season under second year head coach Chris Boettcher the Thunderbirds were picked to finish 11th by both the media and coaches.
Last Time Against Southern Utah
Kourteney Zadina had a career high 22 points, hitting on 6-of-9 3-pointers to help lead Northern Colorado to an 88-66 victory.
Zadina was one of five UNC players to score in double digits in the game, joined by Stephanie Lee (13), Kyleigh Hiser (12), D'shara Strange (11) and Savannah Scott (10).
In the game UNC shot 53.6 percent to 39.6 percent from Southern Utah. (Full Recap)
Last Time Out
The Bears were in an early hole vs Montana State last Saturday, but battled back in the second half. After trailing by as much as15 during the first half, UNC cut the MSU lead to one with around 5:00 left in the game. Katie Longwell hit four shots from downtown to lead the Bears with 12 points in the 66-58 lose.
Against the Big Sky
UNC is 96-120 all-time against Big Sky opponents. Since joining the conference in the 2006-07 season, the Bears are 86-84 all-time. Last season the Bears went 12-6 in the conference to finish third.
On This Date
The Bears hold a 6-4 record all-time on January 21, including going 6-2 at home. Even with the winning record on the date, UNC is currently on a four-game losing streak, dating back to 1999. The last time Northern Colorado played on the date was in 2012 at home losing a nail-bitter vs Montana State 52-51.
Month of January
Northern Colorado is just a bit below .500 in the first month of a new year. The Bears have accumulated a 174-179 mark in January. Under current head coach Kamie Ethridge the team is 6-8.
Finding Her Spot
Freshman forward Courtney Smith has grown into her role for the Bears this year. Over the past three games she has played some valuable minutes for the team. In those games she is averaging 12 minutes and 5.7 points helping give front court mate a break.
Road Woes
UNC has struggled on the road this season going 1-7 in true road games. The Bears are averaging 54.6 points a game way from Bank of Colorado Arena and allowing opponents to score 62.2. In the team's first seven road games, opponents have outshot UNC .434-to-.374.
Comeback Week
The Bears had a pair of comeback victories two weeks ago, inside Bank of Colorado Arena. On Thursday night UNC recorded its second largest come-from-behind win in the programs DI history vs Idaho State. The 14 points were four shy of the record. On February 2, 2012 UNC trailed by 18 in the first half vs Sacramento State, but came storming back to win 64-56. Kourteney Zadina hit the game winning shot with 1.9 seconds left.
On Saturday it was another double digit comeback for Northern Colorado, this one of the 12 point flavor. After leading the majority of the game and even by 11 points at one points the Bears ended up down 12 to Weber State early in the fourth quarter. Savannah Scott hit the game-winning jumper as time expired to give UNC the 65-63 win and cap off a 19-5 run during the final 7:02 of play.
Finding Their Roles
Northern Colorado seems to be settling into its roles on the team as conference play has started. While Kourteney Zadina and Kyleigh Hiser are looked at as sharp shooters, Savannah Scott and Kianna Williams have stepped up as stat sheet stuffers. Another couple roles that have been well defined for the team are the solid inside presence of Rebecca Howell and Courtney Smith on both ends of the court.
D-D-D-Defense
The Bears has really stepped it up defensively as Big Sky play has started. In the team's first five Big Sky games, Northern Colorado is holding teams to just 58.6 points a game.
UNC put the clamps down on defense last Thursday night in the second half. For the half the Bears made a stop on 24 of Idaho State's 31 possessions. They also held ISU to just two points in the third quarter and 1-of-12 shooting. The Bengals were held scoreless for an 11:06 period allowing UNC to come back and take a seven point lead.
Against Montana State defense once again proved to be important in UNC's comeback attempt. In the third quarter of the game, the Bears held the Bobcats to just 2-13 shooting and six points overall.
Kiwi Stuffing the Stat Sheet
Kianna Williams has taken off in her sophomore season doing it all for the Bears. She ranks fourth on the team in scoring (7.7 ppg), second in assists (2.5 apg), first in rebounds (4.5 rpg) and first in steals (1.8 spg).
Swaggy Z Hitting Her Stride
Kourteney "Swaggy Z" Zadina had a slower than usual start to the season, but has turned it on since Thanksgiving. In UNC's games post-Thanksgiving she is averaging 11.7 points a game, shooting 41.4 percent and 37.7 percent from 3-point land. In Big Sky games she is the team leader averaging 12.0 points on 39.5 percent shooting and hitting 35.3 percent of her 3-pointers.
70 is the Mark
Coach Ethridge always preaches to her team that if they score 70 points they are in a good position to win. This season that has happened in four of the teams seven wins.
From Downtown
The Bears have been feeling it from behind the arc this season averaging 8.4 made threes a game. That ranks tied for 18th best in the nation, but only third best in the Big Sky. Both Idaho (3rd) and Sacramento State (1st) are ahead of UNC.
Stuck Like Glue
After the game against South Dakota State, Kamie Ethridge called Savannah Scott, "the glue that keeps the team together." Scott has had a strong start to her sophomore season. She has stuffed the stat sheet with her play averaging 10.2 points, 4.4 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.7 steals a game.
Valuing The Ball
Once again this year UNC is valuing the rock, and forcing teams into turnovers. They rank 26th in the country and second in the Big Sky with a 1.19 assist-turnover ratio.
Youth Is Served
With the graduation of four key seniors from last year, youth will definitely be a big part of the team this season. So far, 49.4 percent of the team's scoring is coming from underclassmen and 43.0 percent of the rebounds.
RPI Report
UNC is ranked 161 as of 1/19, second best in the Big Sky. Idaho is the highest at 118.
What's On Deck?
Northern Colorado continues its short home stand when they host Northern Arizona on Saturday at 2 p.m.
Around The Den
Men's basketball looks to move up the Big Sky standings when they hit the road to face Southern Utah and Northern Arizona. Last week they split games against Montana (L, 73-66) and Montana State (W, 78-76).
Track and Field continues its indoor season, heading down to Colorado Springs for a three-day event at the Air Force Academy.
Wrestling closes out its three-game home stand when they host Cal Poly on Friday night. Before the match, USA Wrestling will be hosting the Jack Pinto Cup featuring some of the top wrestlers from the US facing the top wrestlers from around the world.
Swim and Dive heads over to the western slopes to take on Colorado Mesa Friday evening.
Players Mentioned
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