University of Northern Colorado Athletics
Thursday, February 14
Greeley, Colo.
7pm
University of Northern Colorado
15-8, 10-4BSC
72
vs
76
Eastern Washington
7-15, 6-7BSC
1
2
3
4
F
Eastern Washington
15
24
18
19
76
Northern Colorado
17
14
26
15
72
Photo by: Dean Popejoy
@UNCBearsWBB falls late to Eastern Washington
2/14/2019 10:22:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Eastern Washington gets past UNC late in the fourth quarter Thursday
Key plays in the final 40 seconds became the difference between Northern Colorado and Eastern Washington on Thursday night inside Bank of Colorado Arena. The Eagles made just enough of them to escape Greeley with the win 76-72.
The tension in the final 40 seconds was set up by a UNC 7-0 run from the 3:29 mark to 1:40 left in the game to cut the EWU lead from 70-61 to 70-68.
UNC had a shot to tie the game with 37 seconds left after Savannah Smith drew a charge on Eastern Washington's Violet Kapri Morrow when they were down two, but the Eagles swarmed Smith on the ensuing possession to force a turnover and extend the lead to four with 15 seconds left.
The Bears had an open look from behind the arc on the inbounds play, but EWU's Bella Cravens closed out quickly and blocked the shot to secure the win for the Eagles.
Northern Colorado trailed in the game early on as Eastern Washington outshot them 50.0 percent to 37.5 in the first half. A key stretch in the half included a 14-2 EWU run in the second quarter that helped put them up eight at the break, 39-31.
The third quarter was the best quarter for the Bears, as they closed it on an 11-2 run to enter the fourth tied at 57. UNC shot 56.3 percent in the third, including 4-of-7 from behind the arc. In the quarter, Savannah Smith had 15 of her team-leading 26 points including a buzzer-beater three to tie the game.
Eastern Washington's Violet Kapri Morrow led all scorers with 29 points, while UNC's Ali Meyer continues to clean the glass leading all players with 14 rebounds on Thursday night.
What they said
Head Coach Jenny Huth
Overall Thoughts on the game
We have struggled both times we have played Eastern Washington this year. Defensively we weren't sharp and gave them easy looks. They were getting jump shots and early threes tonight. We wanted to take away Morrow, but were unable to. I thought we had enough offense tonight, but it's the defensive end we have to improve. It's a trend I don't like that we have had recently defensively we did not play well against Portland State either, The third quarter was the highlight of the game for us and changed the tempo of the game for us. Unfortunately, execution down the stretch was not our greatest tonight either,
Stat to know
UNC ended up taking 12 more shots than the Eagles, but both teams made 27 baskets as EWU shot 50.0 percent, while UNC went 40.9 percent from the field. That and EWU made five more free throws than the Bears.
Game notes
- Savannah Smith continues to move up record books, this time the Big Sky record book for made 3s. She made six on Thursday to bring her career total to 258, cracking the top 5 in Big Sky Conference history.
- Four Bears finished the game in double figures scoring led by Smith. The other three were Krystal Leger-Walker (13), Alexis Chapman (13) and Micayla Isenbart (10).
Around the Big Sky
It was a good night to be the road team in the Big Sky as four of the five winners were the away team. Montana was the only home to defend its home court in a 64-56 win over Weber State.
What's ahead
Northern Colorado now looks to rebound at home on Saturday against league leader Idaho. The Bears and Vandals tip-off at 2 pm. Before the game join UNC Athletics in celebrating National Girls and Women in Sports Day with a clinic starting at 12 pm inside the Campus Recreation Center located next to Bank of Colorado Arena.
Tickets to all Northern Colorado women's can be purchased by clicking here, visiting the UNC Ticket Office located at the Campus Commons Monday-Friday from 10 am-7 pm or by calling 970-351-4849.
To stay up to date on all things UNC women's basketball, visit UNCBears.com and follow the team on Twitter at @UNCBearsWBB.
The tension in the final 40 seconds was set up by a UNC 7-0 run from the 3:29 mark to 1:40 left in the game to cut the EWU lead from 70-61 to 70-68.
UNC had a shot to tie the game with 37 seconds left after Savannah Smith drew a charge on Eastern Washington's Violet Kapri Morrow when they were down two, but the Eagles swarmed Smith on the ensuing possession to force a turnover and extend the lead to four with 15 seconds left.
The Bears had an open look from behind the arc on the inbounds play, but EWU's Bella Cravens closed out quickly and blocked the shot to secure the win for the Eagles.
Northern Colorado trailed in the game early on as Eastern Washington outshot them 50.0 percent to 37.5 in the first half. A key stretch in the half included a 14-2 EWU run in the second quarter that helped put them up eight at the break, 39-31.
The third quarter was the best quarter for the Bears, as they closed it on an 11-2 run to enter the fourth tied at 57. UNC shot 56.3 percent in the third, including 4-of-7 from behind the arc. In the quarter, Savannah Smith had 15 of her team-leading 26 points including a buzzer-beater three to tie the game.
Eastern Washington's Violet Kapri Morrow led all scorers with 29 points, while UNC's Ali Meyer continues to clean the glass leading all players with 14 rebounds on Thursday night.
What they said
Head Coach Jenny Huth
Overall Thoughts on the game
We have struggled both times we have played Eastern Washington this year. Defensively we weren't sharp and gave them easy looks. They were getting jump shots and early threes tonight. We wanted to take away Morrow, but were unable to. I thought we had enough offense tonight, but it's the defensive end we have to improve. It's a trend I don't like that we have had recently defensively we did not play well against Portland State either, The third quarter was the highlight of the game for us and changed the tempo of the game for us. Unfortunately, execution down the stretch was not our greatest tonight either,
Stat to know
UNC ended up taking 12 more shots than the Eagles, but both teams made 27 baskets as EWU shot 50.0 percent, while UNC went 40.9 percent from the field. That and EWU made five more free throws than the Bears.
Game notes
- Savannah Smith continues to move up record books, this time the Big Sky record book for made 3s. She made six on Thursday to bring her career total to 258, cracking the top 5 in Big Sky Conference history.
- Four Bears finished the game in double figures scoring led by Smith. The other three were Krystal Leger-Walker (13), Alexis Chapman (13) and Micayla Isenbart (10).
Around the Big Sky
It was a good night to be the road team in the Big Sky as four of the five winners were the away team. Montana was the only home to defend its home court in a 64-56 win over Weber State.
What's ahead
Northern Colorado now looks to rebound at home on Saturday against league leader Idaho. The Bears and Vandals tip-off at 2 pm. Before the game join UNC Athletics in celebrating National Girls and Women in Sports Day with a clinic starting at 12 pm inside the Campus Recreation Center located next to Bank of Colorado Arena.
Tickets to all Northern Colorado women's can be purchased by clicking here, visiting the UNC Ticket Office located at the Campus Commons Monday-Friday from 10 am-7 pm or by calling 970-351-4849.
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
EWU
NC
FG%
.500
.409
3FG%
.391
.357
FT%
.765
1.000
RB
35
33
TO
13
11
STL
4
3
Game Leaders
Pts
26
FGM
8
3FGM
6
FTM
4
Pts
13
FGM
6
3FGM
1
FTM
0
Pts
13
FGM
5
3FGM
1
FTM
2
Pts
10
FGM
3
3FGM
2
FTM
2
Players Mentioned
G
/ Women's Basketball
G/F
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's Basketball
G/PG
/ Women's BasketballUNC Weekly Press Conference - Kristen Mattio (Feb. 10)
Tuesday, February 10
Neenah George and Kristen Mattio Press Conference vs Idaho State
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Aniah Hall and Kristen Mattio Press Conference Vs Weber State
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UNC Weekly Press Conference - Kristen Mattio (Feb. 3)
Tuesday, February 03
