Recap: @UNCBearsWBB Defeats Sacramento State on Senior Night

Friday, March 2

Greeley, Colo

7pm

University of Northern Colorado

23-6, 15-3BSC

Sacramento State

7-13, 5-13BSC

Sacramento State

Northern Colorado

3/2/2018 11:16:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score

Northern Colorado basketball defeated Sac State 90-68 on Senior Night

By: By Ryan Pfeifer, UNCBears.com

GREELEY, Colo. – Northern Colorado women's basketball continued its winning ways on Friday night with a 90-68 win over Sacramento State Friday night inside Bank of Colorado Arena. The Bears win is a program record 23 along with extending their win streak to 10 games.

(3/2/2018) WBB vs Sacramento State

Sacramento State plays a style of basketball that tries to speed its opponent up and force turnovers, but UNC handled the Hornets pressure and style well to control the game. Just like Wednesday night, UNC never trailed in the game and led for 37:37 of it.

UNC and Sac State traded baskets through the majority of the first quarter with the Bears leading 21-15 by the end of it. Over the final two minutes of the first quarter and two and a half minutes of the second Northern Colorado went on a 13-2 run to gain its first double-figure lead of the game. Tiarna Clarke, Krystal Leger-Walker and Kianna Williams all hit 3-pointers during it.

The Bears closed out the second quarter with another strong run outscoring the Hornets 11-2 to lead 45-28 at the break. UNC hit seven 3s in the first half and shot 44.7 percent from the field.

Northern Colorado slowly grew its lead to 20 in the third quarter, before using an 8-0 run to led by 27 with 2 minutes remaining in the third. With the game well in hand, the team enjoyed its final regular season game at Bank of Colorado Arena and Senior Night, the rest of the way.

UNC finished the game with five scorers in doubles figures led by Tiarna Clarkes 19 off the bench.

What They Said
Head coach Kamie Ethridge

About the team's mindset heading to Reno
"We made a lot of shots tonight and had a great flow and pace when we were playing at our best tonight. I thought Krystal's floor game was tremendous. I loved seeing our team play at such a high-level tonight. You want to be on a high and confident as you head into the postseason, but you do not want to lose your edge being too confident."

How the team handled Sac State's pressure
"We challenged our team about our ball handling believing it could be better than it was recently. That's key against Sacramento State who feeds off of those turnovers and the number of positions they play."

Senior Kianna Williams

Playing on Senior Night
"I was already so hyped just from the day that everything else was so awesome and the icing on the cake."

Senior Savannah Scott

How the team feels going into the Big Sky Tournament
"It feels good to be on the 10-game win streak and for the way we are playing. We have gone through injuries and adversity all year long so to be playing the way we are, we have a lot of confidence."

Game Changer
It was Senior Night for UNC and its three graduating players in Savannah Scott, Kianna Williams and Kirsten Kramer played well one last time in Greeley. The trio combined for 35 points, 11 rebounds, seven assists and five steals. Scott scored 18 of those points and Williams added in five rebounds. Kramer put a fitting cap on the night, draining the final shot of the game from beyond the arc.

Stat to Know
Sacramento State feeds off its aggressive defense to defeat teams, but UNC did a good job of handling their defense. The Bears turned the ball over just seven times compared to 13 by Sacramento State. Northern Colorado scored 21 points off turnovers compared to two by Sac.

Game Notes
- The Bears hit a season-high 15 3-pointers Friday night. UNC shot an impressive 41.7 percent from beyond the arc.
- Tiarna Clarke led the team with 19 points, while Savannah Scott (18), Savannah Smith (15), Kianna Williams (14) and Krystal Leger-Walker (10) all finished in double figures as well.
- Northern Colorado held Sacramento State to 38.5 percent shooting from the field while shooting 47.2 percent themselves.
- Savannah Smith tied a career-high with eight assists in the game.

What's Ahead?
It's off to Reno for Northern Colorado and the rest of the Big Sky Conference for the 2018 Big Sky Tournament. Round one of the women's bracket begins Monday, but as regular season champions, the Bears earned a bye in the tournament. UNC's first game will take place on Wednesday, March 7 against the winner of the 8/9 game between Montana and Sacramento State at 1:05 pm MT.

To stay up to date on all things UNC women's basketball, visit UNCBears.co, and follow the team on Twitter at @UNCBearsWBB.