University of Northern Colorado Athletics
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Savannah Smith Leads Way as @UNCBearsWBB Defeats Idaho State 77-62
1/19/2017 10:04:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Savannah Smith had a career-high 29 points as UNC won its eighth straight Thursday 77-62 over Idaho State.
POCATELLO, Idaho – Behind the Savannahs, Smith and Scott, and 14 3-pointers Northern Colorado extended its win streak to eight and moved to 7-0 in Big Sky play Thursday night with a 77-62 win over Idaho State.
Savannah Smith scored a career-high 29 in the win, while teammate Savannah Scott added in 16 of her own.
How It Happened
Northern Colorado started the game strong going on a 9-0 run to build an early 9-2 lead. It was the combo of a strong pick and roll game and tough defense that helped the Bears get out to the early advantage.
Idaho State's first field goal of the game did not come until the 3:21 mark of the first, as UNC held a 13-8 lead after the first 10 minutes.
A 10-0 ISU run under a window of just two minutes of play put them up at 18-16 early on in the second half. The teams played within three points of each other for the rest of the half.
The Savannah duo of Smith and Scott scored the final 12 points of the half for UNC.
S. Smith had seven of those points and scored 11 overall for the half, as the Bears led 28-25 at the break.
The duo picked up right where they left off in the first half, scoring the first nine points of the second half for UNC as they expanded its lead to 10. The Bengals got within six with just under four minutes left in the quarter, but never any closer than that the rest of the game.
Northern Colorado entered the fourth quarter up 48-41, and quickly built the lead to 12 with a pair of S. Smith threes. UNC led by double figures the rest of the way, hitting five of its 14 3-pointers in the fourth quarter as they went on to a 77-62 win.
Game Changer
Idaho State had no answer for Savannah Smith Thursday night. She finished the game with a career-high 29 points on 10-of-17 shooting including hitting six 3-pointers. Those six threes tied a program DI record. On top of all of the scoring, Smith ended the game with six rebounds and four assists.
Notable
- Northern Colorado burned down the nets Thursday night hitting a season-high 14 3-pointers. That was four off the program record, and one off the Division I record for the team.
- Savannah Scott had a strong game as well for the Bears. She scored 16 points, missing just one field goal. She hit three treys and all five of her free throw attempts along with grabbing four rebounds and dishing out four assists.
- The win moved UNC's win streak to eight games, which is the eighth longest in program history.
Quotable
Head Coach Kamie Ethridge
Overall Statement
"It was a tremendous win on the road to play and compete like we did. We did not have a real strong first half offensively, and defensively the way they (Idaho State) scored were off our mistakes. At half we talked a lot about fixing us and being the better team in the second half. That is what you saw, just a very dominate team in the second half. I can't say it enough about this team and how they respond to tough conditions and environments on the road. It was just another game that our entire team grew up some more tonight and learned some lessons we can take forward."
About Savannah Smith
"Savannah Smith was a great leader for us tonight. She was just off the charts good tonight. It may have been her best all-around game since she has been here. The fact that she scored so many points on so few shots, and her threes just allowed us to pull away and manage the game in the second half. She just took control of the floor and was the best player out there. As long as she was on the floor she took command and we ran really good offense."
On Savannah Scott's play
"Savannah Scott finished the night on five shots, hitting threes for us and big shots. She was another guard for us that handled the pressure that Idaho State put on us and made them pay for it by getting to the line."
What's Next?
The Bears close out its road trip when they head to Ogden, Utah Saturday night. The Bears will take on Weber State at 2 pm. The Wildcats are coming off a 70-65 loss against North Dakota Thursday night.
