University of Northern Colorado Athletics
Sunday, November 27
San Antonio, Texas
11:00 am
University of Northern Colorado
5-1
58
vs
57
Eastern Michigan
2-4
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Northern Colorado | 20 | 5 | 15 | 18 | 58 |
| Eastern Michigan | 12 | 10 | 18 | 17 | 57 |
Team Stats
NC
EMU
FG%
.365
.379
3FG%
.222
.389
FT%
.857
.667
RB
37
39
TO
10
12
STL
9
5
Game Leaders
Pts
17
FGM
8
3FGM
0
FTM
1
Pts
13
FGM
4
3FGM
3
FTM
2
Pts
10
FGM
3
3FGM
2
FTM
2
Pts
7
FGM
3
3FGM
1
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
G
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's BasketballPG
/ Women's BasketballC
/ Women's BasketballG/PG
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's Basketball
Savannah Smith's Late Shot Lifts @UNCBearsWBB Over Eastern Michigan
11/27/2016 2:14:00 PM | Women's Basketball
UNC wbb overcame a nine point fourth quarter deficit to extend its win streak to five thanks to Savannah Smith's and one with 7.3 seconds left
SAN ANTONIO, Texas – It's safe to say you cannot count out the UNC women's basketball team until the clock hits zeros. The cardiac Bears used a Savannah Smith four-point play with 7.3 seconds left to lift them past Eastern Michigan Sunday afternoon 58-57. The win moves UNC's win streak to five and overall record to 5-1.
How it Happened
Kianna Williams paced the Bears early on, scoring the first three points for UNC as they jumped out to a 6-0 lead. Eastern Michigan came back with a 6-0 run of its own to even the score up.
In the middle part of the first quarter, it became all Northern Colorado with a 12-3 run, once again led by Williams with her four point and rebound. The Bears held a 20-12 lead as the horn sounded and Williams finished the quarter with seven points and five rebounds.
UNC extended its lead to 10 to begin the second quarter on a Katie Longwell jumper, but was unable to buy a basket for a 5:28 stretch as the Eagles worked their way into the Bears' lead, cutting it to six during that time.
Savannah Smith hit a 3-pointer to end the drought for UNC, but that was the last time the team scored before the half, as they shot just 13.3 percent from the field in the second quarter. Despite the struggles on offense, UNC held a slim 25-22 lead at the break.
The shooting woes continued for Northern Colorado in the third quarter, with another scoring drought over four minutes, allowing Eastern Michigan to take its first lead of the game at 32-29 with 4:35 on the clock.
UNC's offense gotbgoing again after that though, going on a 9-3 run to lead by three, 40-37, before EMU's Micha Robinson hit a buzzer beating three to have a 40-40 game going to the final 10 minutes of play.
The Eagles started the fourth quarter strong, with a 13-2 run to build a nine point lead on UNC with 5:30 left in the game.
The Bears responded, beginning with a Krystal Leger-Walker jumper to spark a 6-0 run and put the team within three with 3:24 remaining.
The lead stayed at three, after Savannah Scott hit a pair of free throws with 1:07 left, as the game entered its final minute of play. UNC got a steal from Leger-Walker, and had a pair of chances to tie the game, but both her and Scott were unable to hit the game-tying three and needed to get a steal for another chance.
Once again, it was Leger-Walker who came up with the steal. Through her tough defense she nearly forced a back court violation, but instead grabbed the ball for UNC with 18 seconds left.
Following a timeout by head coach Kamie Ethridge, UNC set up the game-winning play.
Katie Longwell found S. Smith who came off a screen on the right side for a 3-pointer to tie the game and was fouled with 7.3 seconds left.
Smith, a 72.3 percent career free throw shooter, watched the free throw roll around the rim a couple times before falling to put the Bears up 58-57. A last second shot from the Eagles fell short as Northern Colorado completed the nine point comeback win.
Game Changer
Savannah Smith had struggled shooting most of the game, going into the last sequence of the contest Smith was 3-of-11 from the field, but hit a shot when it counted. Coming off a designed end-of-game play, she hit the game-tying three and was fouled on the shot with 7.3 seconds left. She finished the four-point play by makint the free throw to secure the UNC win. For the game, she finished with 13 points, five rebounds, two assists and a steal.
Notable
- In a game when Northern Colorado's offense struggled, Courtney Smith was one constant for the team. She led the team with a career-high 17 points on 8-of-13 shooting. She also added in six rebounds and another career-high with five assists.
- Kianna Williams, who had a quick start for UNC ended the game with nine points, seven rebounds and four assists.
- As a team Northern Colorado shared the ball well, compiling 19 assists, to just 10 turnovers by the team.
Quotable
Head Coach Kamie Ethridge
"It was a hard fought game by both teams. We came out of the gates well, playing with good emotion and making plays. Even with the way we were playing in that first quarter, we were never able to really pull away. Then in the second quarter our offensive execution just came to a stop and we were unable to get our momentum going again the rest of the night. That led to giving us the ability to execute the way we wanted to. As we lost that execution, they became more aggressive against us."
"As we got down nine, we just had to find ways to score and Courtney Smith was one who was consistent for us all game long. We ended up getting different lineups to make the plays we needed. Krystal may have not had her best overall game for us, but she made big steals when we needed it. This game showed the type of versatility we have, and a good thing about this win is that we just found a way to comeback and execute when it didn't look like we didn't have much of a chance. I am just extremely proud of the team's fight and execution definitely in the late game execution."
"Katie made a great play to create an opportunity for Savannah to come off a screen and get a clean look, just how we designed it. The best part of it was she made it and then the next best part of it was she got fouled for the chance to win the game for us. It was the same play we tried to run against Florida Gulf Coast, but this time it worked and showed how we continue to grow and learn as a team."
What's Next?
Northern Colorado returns to the state of Colorado, but will stay on the road next week when they head up I-25 to take on Colorado State. The Bears and Rams will tip-off at 2 pm, next Sunday, December 4 in Fort Collins.
UNC's next three games will be played in the Centennial State, but just with one at home, on December 13. The other game will be at Air Force on December 10.
How it Happened
Kianna Williams paced the Bears early on, scoring the first three points for UNC as they jumped out to a 6-0 lead. Eastern Michigan came back with a 6-0 run of its own to even the score up.
In the middle part of the first quarter, it became all Northern Colorado with a 12-3 run, once again led by Williams with her four point and rebound. The Bears held a 20-12 lead as the horn sounded and Williams finished the quarter with seven points and five rebounds.
UNC extended its lead to 10 to begin the second quarter on a Katie Longwell jumper, but was unable to buy a basket for a 5:28 stretch as the Eagles worked their way into the Bears' lead, cutting it to six during that time.
Savannah Smith hit a 3-pointer to end the drought for UNC, but that was the last time the team scored before the half, as they shot just 13.3 percent from the field in the second quarter. Despite the struggles on offense, UNC held a slim 25-22 lead at the break.
The shooting woes continued for Northern Colorado in the third quarter, with another scoring drought over four minutes, allowing Eastern Michigan to take its first lead of the game at 32-29 with 4:35 on the clock.
UNC's offense gotbgoing again after that though, going on a 9-3 run to lead by three, 40-37, before EMU's Micha Robinson hit a buzzer beating three to have a 40-40 game going to the final 10 minutes of play.
The Eagles started the fourth quarter strong, with a 13-2 run to build a nine point lead on UNC with 5:30 left in the game.
The Bears responded, beginning with a Krystal Leger-Walker jumper to spark a 6-0 run and put the team within three with 3:24 remaining.
The lead stayed at three, after Savannah Scott hit a pair of free throws with 1:07 left, as the game entered its final minute of play. UNC got a steal from Leger-Walker, and had a pair of chances to tie the game, but both her and Scott were unable to hit the game-tying three and needed to get a steal for another chance.
Once again, it was Leger-Walker who came up with the steal. Through her tough defense she nearly forced a back court violation, but instead grabbed the ball for UNC with 18 seconds left.
Following a timeout by head coach Kamie Ethridge, UNC set up the game-winning play.
Katie Longwell found S. Smith who came off a screen on the right side for a 3-pointer to tie the game and was fouled with 7.3 seconds left.
Smith, a 72.3 percent career free throw shooter, watched the free throw roll around the rim a couple times before falling to put the Bears up 58-57. A last second shot from the Eagles fell short as Northern Colorado completed the nine point comeback win.
Game Changer
Savannah Smith had struggled shooting most of the game, going into the last sequence of the contest Smith was 3-of-11 from the field, but hit a shot when it counted. Coming off a designed end-of-game play, she hit the game-tying three and was fouled on the shot with 7.3 seconds left. She finished the four-point play by makint the free throw to secure the UNC win. For the game, she finished with 13 points, five rebounds, two assists and a steal.
Notable
- In a game when Northern Colorado's offense struggled, Courtney Smith was one constant for the team. She led the team with a career-high 17 points on 8-of-13 shooting. She also added in six rebounds and another career-high with five assists.
- Kianna Williams, who had a quick start for UNC ended the game with nine points, seven rebounds and four assists.
- As a team Northern Colorado shared the ball well, compiling 19 assists, to just 10 turnovers by the team.
Quotable
Head Coach Kamie Ethridge
"It was a hard fought game by both teams. We came out of the gates well, playing with good emotion and making plays. Even with the way we were playing in that first quarter, we were never able to really pull away. Then in the second quarter our offensive execution just came to a stop and we were unable to get our momentum going again the rest of the night. That led to giving us the ability to execute the way we wanted to. As we lost that execution, they became more aggressive against us."
"As we got down nine, we just had to find ways to score and Courtney Smith was one who was consistent for us all game long. We ended up getting different lineups to make the plays we needed. Krystal may have not had her best overall game for us, but she made big steals when we needed it. This game showed the type of versatility we have, and a good thing about this win is that we just found a way to comeback and execute when it didn't look like we didn't have much of a chance. I am just extremely proud of the team's fight and execution definitely in the late game execution."
"Katie made a great play to create an opportunity for Savannah to come off a screen and get a clean look, just how we designed it. The best part of it was she made it and then the next best part of it was she got fouled for the chance to win the game for us. It was the same play we tried to run against Florida Gulf Coast, but this time it worked and showed how we continue to grow and learn as a team."
What's Next?
Northern Colorado returns to the state of Colorado, but will stay on the road next week when they head up I-25 to take on Colorado State. The Bears and Rams will tip-off at 2 pm, next Sunday, December 4 in Fort Collins.
UNC's next three games will be played in the Centennial State, but just with one at home, on December 13. The other game will be at Air Force on December 10.
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