University of Northern Colorado Athletics
Saturday, February 17
Cedar City, Utah
12:30 pm
University of Northern Colorado
20-6 (12-3BSC)
60
at
54
Southern Utah
3-22 (2-12BSC)
1
2
3
4
F
Northern Colorado
14
14
19
13
60
Southern Utah
5
20
8
21
54
Recap: @UNCBearsWBB Picks Up 20th Win of Season at Southern Utah
2/17/2018 4:47:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Northern Colorado grinned out its 20th win of the season at Southern Utah Saturday 60-54
CEDAR CITY, Utah – Northern Colorado capped off its final road trip of the year with a gritty 60-54 win at Southern Utah (3-22, 2-12 Big Sky) Saturday afternoon. The win is the 20th of the season for UNC (20-6, 12-3 Big Sky), and improves the team's record to 12-3 in the Big Sky.
The Bears defense came out strong, holding SUU to 15.3 percent shooting in the 1st quarter on the way to a 14-5 lead. Tiarna Clarke picked up right where she left off on Thursday, scoring the first eight points for UNC with two 3-pointers and a great spin move on a drive.
Northern Colorado extended its lead to 16 as Savannah Smith heated up hitting back-to-back 3s. The team's offense struggled after that though, not connecting on a field goal over the final 5:57 of the half and turning the ball over six times. With UNC's offense struggling, SUU outscored the Bears 14-2 to make it a 28-25 Bears lead at the half.
UNC came out of the half and played a strong game on both ends of the court, opening the half with an 11-0 run. Southern Utah missed its first seven shots of the quarter and turned the ball over three times, before breaking the lid off the hoop with 3:41 left in the third. Bridget Hintz had a strong quarter going 3-for-3 from the field scoring six points.
Similar to the second quarter, Northern Colorado's offense struggled to score a basket to begin the fourth quarter, and SUU went on a 10-0 run to cut the Bears lead down to four. Clarke hit a pair of big 3-pointers to end the Thunderbirds run and put UNC back up by double figures. The lead stayed that way until SUU made a late charge cutting the Bears lead to five inside the final 30 seconds, but never any closer than that.
What They Said
Head coach Kamie Ethridge
How important Tiarna Clarke was today
"I love the fact that we were able to pull off the win today when we struggled in a lot of ways and a lot of people struggled to score. I thought Tiarna Clarke was really good offensively today for us making one big basket after another and we needed that from her."
The impact Kianna Williams has on the team
"Kianna Williams was tremendous defensively in every aspect of the game. She continues to be what I think is the best defender in the league. When she comes off of the court we are not near as good of a basketball team."
About Savannah Smith's consistent play
"Savannah Smith had another great game scoring the ball for us and doing what we need her to do."
On winning 20 games this season
"It says a lot about this team to win 20 games this season with all of the adversity and injuries they have faced and been able to find ways to win. I am excited about the future of this team and seeing individuals continuing to still grow. It's a great time of year to still see we can grow and improve moving forward."
Game Changer
Kianna Williams effected every aspect of the game Saturday afternoon. She finished the game with an impressive 11 rebounds to go along with four assists, four steals, two blocks and two points. Williams' on-ball and help side defense were key for the Bears and she helped hold Southern Utah to just 32.2 percent shooting.
Stat to Know
Neither team handled the ball well, but UNC made SUU pay for its turnovers, scoring 21 points on 20 turnovers. The Bears ability to turn Southern Utah mistakes into points helped the team earn the win.
Game Notes
- Tiarna Clarke had another strong game Saturday, with a career-high 20 points on 7-of-12 shooting, including hitting four 3-pointers. She also had three rebounds and a pair of assists in the game.
- Savannah Smith scored over 20 points once again for UNC, finishing with 22. To go along with the 22 points, she recorded five rebounds, three steals and two assists while playing all 40 minutes.
- Bridget Hintz had a big second half for the Bears scoring eight of her 10 points in the half and grabbing all four of her rebounds during it as well.
What's Ahead
Northern Colorado returns home for its final three regular season beginning next Saturday when North Dakota visits Bank of Colorado Arena at 2 pm.
Tickets for the game can be purchased through UNCBears.com/Tickets, by calling 970-351-4849 or visiting the UNC Ticket office.
To stay up to date on all things UNC women's basketball, visit UNCBears.com and follow the team on Twitter at @UNCBearsWBB.
The Bears defense came out strong, holding SUU to 15.3 percent shooting in the 1st quarter on the way to a 14-5 lead. Tiarna Clarke picked up right where she left off on Thursday, scoring the first eight points for UNC with two 3-pointers and a great spin move on a drive.
Northern Colorado extended its lead to 16 as Savannah Smith heated up hitting back-to-back 3s. The team's offense struggled after that though, not connecting on a field goal over the final 5:57 of the half and turning the ball over six times. With UNC's offense struggling, SUU outscored the Bears 14-2 to make it a 28-25 Bears lead at the half.
UNC came out of the half and played a strong game on both ends of the court, opening the half with an 11-0 run. Southern Utah missed its first seven shots of the quarter and turned the ball over three times, before breaking the lid off the hoop with 3:41 left in the third. Bridget Hintz had a strong quarter going 3-for-3 from the field scoring six points.
Similar to the second quarter, Northern Colorado's offense struggled to score a basket to begin the fourth quarter, and SUU went on a 10-0 run to cut the Bears lead down to four. Clarke hit a pair of big 3-pointers to end the Thunderbirds run and put UNC back up by double figures. The lead stayed that way until SUU made a late charge cutting the Bears lead to five inside the final 30 seconds, but never any closer than that.
What They Said
Head coach Kamie Ethridge
How important Tiarna Clarke was today
"I love the fact that we were able to pull off the win today when we struggled in a lot of ways and a lot of people struggled to score. I thought Tiarna Clarke was really good offensively today for us making one big basket after another and we needed that from her."
The impact Kianna Williams has on the team
"Kianna Williams was tremendous defensively in every aspect of the game. She continues to be what I think is the best defender in the league. When she comes off of the court we are not near as good of a basketball team."
About Savannah Smith's consistent play
"Savannah Smith had another great game scoring the ball for us and doing what we need her to do."
On winning 20 games this season
"It says a lot about this team to win 20 games this season with all of the adversity and injuries they have faced and been able to find ways to win. I am excited about the future of this team and seeing individuals continuing to still grow. It's a great time of year to still see we can grow and improve moving forward."
Game Changer
Kianna Williams effected every aspect of the game Saturday afternoon. She finished the game with an impressive 11 rebounds to go along with four assists, four steals, two blocks and two points. Williams' on-ball and help side defense were key for the Bears and she helped hold Southern Utah to just 32.2 percent shooting.
Stat to Know
Neither team handled the ball well, but UNC made SUU pay for its turnovers, scoring 21 points on 20 turnovers. The Bears ability to turn Southern Utah mistakes into points helped the team earn the win.
Game Notes
- Tiarna Clarke had another strong game Saturday, with a career-high 20 points on 7-of-12 shooting, including hitting four 3-pointers. She also had three rebounds and a pair of assists in the game.
- Savannah Smith scored over 20 points once again for UNC, finishing with 22. To go along with the 22 points, she recorded five rebounds, three steals and two assists while playing all 40 minutes.
- Bridget Hintz had a big second half for the Bears scoring eight of her 10 points in the half and grabbing all four of her rebounds during it as well.
What's Ahead
Northern Colorado returns home for its final three regular season beginning next Saturday when North Dakota visits Bank of Colorado Arena at 2 pm.
Tickets for the game can be purchased through UNCBears.com/Tickets, by calling 970-351-4849 or visiting the UNC Ticket office.
To stay up to date on all things UNC women's basketball, visit UNCBears.com and follow the team on Twitter at @UNCBearsWBB.
Team Stats
UNCO
SUU
FG%
.377
.322
3FG%
.316
.350
FT%
.824
.643
RB
34
40
TO
17
20
STL
14
7
Game Leaders
Pts
22
FGM
6
3FGM
2
FTM
8
Pts
20
FGM
7
3FGM
4
FTM
2
Pts
10
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Pts
6
FGM
2
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Players Mentioned
G
/ Women's BasketballC
/ Women's BasketballG/PG
/ Women's Basketball
G
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