by Cody Bashore, NAU Athletic Communications
FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (December 5, 2020) – After playing a bit less aggressive during the second quarter of Saturday’s Big Sky Conference opener in Cheney, Wash., the Northern Arizona University women’s basketball team picked up the pace for the final 20 minutes.
Forcing 14 turnovers and holding the Eastern Washington Eagles to 27 percent shooting from the field during the second half, NAU put together a dominant run culminating in an 89-60 victory and improved to 2-1 this season while spoiling Eastern Washington’s season opener.
“The fact that we had already played two games, we were playing a bit more polished than we were two weeks ago,” said NAU head coach Loree Payne. “We really focused at halftime on rebounding and I think that’s really what kept the game close in that first half. They were getting a lot of second-chance opportunities and they were also getting easy buckets. We just needed to step it up a little bit, step up our communication defensively and really be the aggressor more on defense.”
Though the Lumberjacks trailed for only 30 seconds of the game, the Eagles kept the game tight as they shot 73.3 percent in the second quarter. A late push by Eastern Washington just before halftime brought the game within three points on three different occasions, as the sides combined for 12 points in the final two minutes before the break.
While freshman Olivia Moran extended the lead back to five, 46-41, thanks to a layup with 16 second remaining, NAU’s double-digit advantage from earlier in the quarter had been cut in half.
“I thought we got away from our transition offense a little bit in that second quarter that was really working for us,” Payne said. “We really focused on that as well and I think we came out and executed pretty well in that third quarter.”
Seniors Miki’ala Maio and JJ Nakai (Navajo) each reached double-digits in the first half, and ended the game with 18 and 14 points respectively. However, it was junior Regan Schenck who helped pick up the pace as the Lumberjacks erupted for a 30-9 run, and 43-19 advantage overall in the second half.
“I was super proud of her that she was looking to shoot and score a little more in that second half,” Payne said. “I felt like she was kind of the leader of our transition offense and really got everyone running with her.”
Sitting with five assists and three rebounds at halftime, Schenck hit all five of her shots in the second half. Finishing the game with 10 points, eight rebounds and seven assists, Schenck neared a triple-double as she pushed the pace and the Lumberjacks flourished.
Whether it was coming down with a defensive board herself, or initiating the up-tempo attack after one of her teammates grabbed a rebound, Shenck flashed her speed as the Eagles struggled to contain her or the rest of the Lumberjacks’ offense.
“She was flirting with a triple-double and I think that there’s probably going to be a couple of those coming up,” Payne said. “She has all of the tools to have a triple-double game and we are just excited to see how she will continue to improve and lead the team.”
All five Lumberjack starters finished in double figures, as the reigning Big Sky Women’s Basketball Player of the Week put together another impressive outing. Finishing with 17 points, including 11 in the second half, sophomore Emily Rodabaugh hit 5-of-8 from the field and connected on all six of her free throws. Adding in four rebounds, three assists and two steals, Rodabaugh continued to flash her impressive all-around ability against the Eagles.
Senior Jacey Bailey added 12 points of her own to go along with three rebounds and three assists, but it was a career-high five steals that stood out as NAU forced 25 turnovers in the victory.
The 29-point advantage on the final score board also stands as NAU’s largest Big Sky road win since February 2007, an 86-49 victory at Northern Colorado. The Lumberjacks achieved the feat while working through an irregular week, with Thursday’s game moved to Sunday afternoon.
“We weren’t able to practice a couple of the days, so for us to be able to manage all the emotions of a challenging week, then be traveling all day yesterday, and come in to perform the way that we did for 40 minutes is something I’m very proud of,” Payne said.
NAU also received 18 points from its bench, with freshman Nyah Moran adding eight points on 4-of-8 shooting. Sophomore Sanjana Ramesh added four points, the first of her Lumberjack career, thanks to a pair of free throws and a second-quarter layup.
“(Sanjana) has had a really good preseason and we have been focusing on her finishing. JJ dropped a dime to her and she was ready for that,” Payne said. “I was really excited to see Nyah go off in the fourth quarter because we have been seeing that in practice and she just needed to get those freshman jitters out those first couple of games.”
NAU and Eastern Washington will face off again on Sunday at 1:05 p.m., with the game available on Pluto TV and WatchBigSky.com. The Lumberjacks will look for a sweep in their first experience with the Big Sky’s new schedule that features teams facing each other twice in the same weekend.
“When you are playing back to back games, you have got to rotate people and try to save some legs,” Payne said. “We are going to be rotating people tomorrow and just really hoping that we can start where we left off today.”
