10 different Bears score but UNC unable to keep pace with Sun Devils

Tuesday, November 9

Tempe, AZ

8 p.m. MT

University of Northern Colorado

0-1,0-0Big Sky

Arizona State University

1-0,0-0Pac-12

Northern Colo.

Arizona St.

11/9/2021 10:31:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score

By: By Thomas Hoffman, UNCBears.com

TEMPE, Ariz. – Northern Colorado officially opened its 2021-22 season Tuesday evening at Arizona State. While the Bears showed plenty of positives that fans can look forward to, it was the Sun Devils who came out on top, 71-41.

It took UNC a couple of moments to get into the game. Hannah Simental got the scoring started, driving right to the bucket to claim her and the Bears' first points of the season.

Q1 | First points of the year go to @hjsimental !!#GetUpGreeley pic.twitter.com/aWphyn0eBh
— UNC Bears WBB (@UNC_BearsWBB) November 10, 2021

A 6-0 and a 7-0 run from the Sun Devils gave the home team the early advantage as Northern Colorado struggled to find a rhythm.

Sabine Lipe poured in her first points as a Bear right before the first-quarter buzzer, floating one in from just in front of the elbow.

The second quarter proved much more fruitful for head coach Mattio and company. UNC shot 55 percent from the floor, including Simental's first three-pointer of the season.

Northern Colorado came out of the locker room on a mission to start the second half.

Q3 | 👌👌👌@hjsimental #GetUpGreeley 🐻🏀 pic.twitter.com/veBCllWqXh
— UNC Bears WBB (@UNC_BearsWBB) November 10, 2021

A 7-0 run that included Zoe Campbell's first points as a Bear cut the lead to single digits and all of the sudden the Bears were in business.

In the end, 32 turnovers combined with eight threes from ASU were too much to overcome. However, by the final whistle, 10 different Bears had scored in the game.

What They Said
Head coach, Kristen Mattio
"Tonight, we learned a lot about ourselves as a team. We are very early in the season and I believe this team has a chance to be special as we mature and improve upon our overall consistency both offensively and defensively."

Stat of the Game
Of the 11 UNC players that checked in to the contest, 10 of them scored.

Game Notes

Hannah Simental led all Bears with 12 points, including 2-4 from three-point range
Kurstyn Harden pulled down a team-high seven rebounds, two shy of her career-best
Harden's two steals were a career-high
Jayce Gorzeman, Sydney Stensgard, Callie Boyles, Sabine Lipe, Allie Downing and Zoe Campbell all made their Northern Colorado debuts.
Jayce Gorzeman earned her first career in the Blue and Gold against the Sun Devils

What's Ahead
Northern Colorado returns to the Centennial State with a matchup with in-state rival Colorado State on Friday, November 12. Tip-off is slated for 5:30 p.m. MT.

To stay up to date on all things UNC Women's basketball, visit UNCBears.com, follow the team on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter and download the new UNC Athletics app by clicking here.