Bears Drop Second Game Against Thunderbirds

Thursday, February 20

Cedar City, Utah

6:30 pm

University of Northern Colorado

11-13,7-8Big Sky

Southern Utah

14-10,8-7Big Sky

Northern Colo.

Southern Utah

Photo by: Dean Popejoy

2/20/2020 9:25:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score

Northern Colorado came up short against Southern Utah Thursday night on the road

By: Matthew Kushar, UNCBears.com

CEDAR CITY, UT- Northern Colorado women's basketball looked for a different result against Southern Utah on the road, but came up short against the Thunderbirds, 64-50.

"Overall, Southern Utah played more confident, executed plays and made plays so credit to them," head coach Jenny Huth said. "We moved [Alexis] to the point guard spot to handle some of the pressure and Ali too. I thought our inside game was efficient. Alisha had a good first quarter, along with Bridget and Ali both being solid. I thought Lex was working hard on both ends, with some great touches and finishes."

UNC shot 36.5 percent from the floor, while the Thunderbirds had a 40.7 percent shooting night. The Bears were 0-for-12 from three-point range. Three players for UNC scored in double figures, led by Alisha Davis' 13 on 6-of-15 shooting. Alexis Chapman scored 11 points on 5-of-12 shooting, while Ali Meyer added 10 points on 5-of-10 shooting.

Foul trouble and turnovers disrupted UNC's offensive flow and allowed SUU to build a lead throughout the game. The Bears had 20 turnovers and 23 fouls.

The Bears started the game well, shooting 47.1 percent in the first quarter. Alisha Davis scored nine points to lead the team, but SUU came out of the quarter with a slim, 18-17 lead. The Thunderbirds shot 41.2 percent in the quarter.

In the second quarter, SUU held the Bears' offense in check, limiting them to 35.7 percent shooting and 12 points. The Thunderbirds recorded a 45.5 percent mark on field goals and scored 18 points to extend their lead over UNC to 36-29.

UNC fought back in the third quarter, limiting SUU to 15 points in the quarter. The Bears also only had one turnover in the quarter, but could not take advantage of the adjustments. The Thunderbirds outscored the Bears by one and were up 51-43 going to the fourth.

SUU's defense would lockdown in the final quarter, holding the Bears to a 25 percent shooting percentage. UNC held the Thunderbirds to 33.3 percent shooting and 13 points, but the defensive effort was unable to make up the deficit. SUU closed out the Bears for the 64-50 win on Thursday night.

Northern Colorado record fell to 7-9 in conference and 11-13 overall this season. Southern Utah improved to 8-7 in the Big Sky and 14-10 overall.

"We have to keep playing faster when we get stops and rebounds work on solid execution when we need to execute," Huth said. "That's still a big area of growth. We need our overall guard play to improve to help us be inside-out effective. It will help us handle pressure and hitting open shots is key to our guard play. Tonight, we didn't do those things and it hurt us."

Game Notes

Northern Colorado and Southern Utah tied in rebounds with 30 apiece. The Bears outscored the Thunderbirds in the paint, 36-26.
UNC recorded 10 offensive rebounds in the game, led by Ali Meyer's four. The Beras converted the second chance opportunities into 16 points. SUU had five offensive rebounds for only three points.
After giving up 30 points to Rebecca Cardenas in the first meeting this season, the SUU guard scored 18 Thursday night.
Meyer was again close to a double-double with 10 points and team-high eight rebounds. Bridget Hintz complimented her down low with six points on 3-of-5 shooting and a had pair of blocks

What's Ahead?
Northern Colorado will be back at Bank of Colorado Arena on Saturday, Feb. 22 to host Idaho State at 2 p.m.(MST).
The game against Idaho State will be National Girls and Women in Sports Day! Join us for the FREE Girls Sports Clinic (ages 5-13 years old) at 12 PM. at the UNC Campus Recreation Center! Check-in begins at 11 AM and the first 100 girls will receive a free t-shirt! Pre-registered participants will also receive a FREE ticket to the Bears Women's Basketball game at 2 PM vs. Idaho State. Walk ups and parents are eligible for discounted tickets!

Sing up through the link here.

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