by Clayton Messerle, WPU Communications
PORTLAND | An overwhelming second half comeback was exactly what the Warner Pacific University Women’s Basketball team (10-10, 8-7) needed in order to walk out of C.C. Perry Gym with a win this afternoon, and Knights Head Coach Matt Gregg got exactly that out of his players, defeating the Walla Walla University Wolves (1-20, 0-14) by a final score of 66-57.
First, credit must be given to an incredibly scrappy and motivated Walla Walla team, as the Wolves absolutely stymied Warner Pacific in the entire first half, leading by double-digits at halftime on the road. WWU teammates Isabella Robles and Jaliyah Casem were both in double-figures in scoring at the break, while WPU’s highest scorer was senior guard Lynden Harry (Warm Springs/Euchee) with six points, nearly a third of Warner Pacific’s point totals for the first half.
Walla Walla University Head Coach Tony Nakashima definitely had a few tricks up his sleeve in play for his old team, as Coach Nakashima was an Assistant Coach for Knights’ Head Coach Matt Gregg and the Knights during the 2014-2015 season for Warner Pacific. Coach Nakashima and his Wolves were hardly phased by Warner Pacific’s usual full-court defensive press in the first 20 minutes of play, driving the ball through the Knights defenders to make easy work of a defensive presence that has baffled conference opponents up to this point of the season.
Meanwhile, WPU was left empty handed on the offensive end time after time again, leaving Coach Gregg and the Knights with quite the uphill battle of an 11-point deficit to begin the second half. Shooting a mere 21.2% from the field in the first half, Warner Pacific needed to find themselves early in the third quarter, and not let up in order to squeeze out a win at home.
Unfortunately for the Wolves, that narrative wrote itself to start the second half, as the Knights shot out of the locker room to go on a 17-2 run to open the period, with senior guard Courtney Jackson securing the first lead of the afternoon for Warner Pacific with 3:36 left in the third quarter.
The Wolves would bend but not break after three quarters of action, with their lead dwindled down to just two points entering the fourth and final quarter of play. Walla Walla’s short bench did not have an impact up to this point of the contest, but that factor started to rear its ugly head with a seven-player rotation showing signs of slowing down with 10 minutes remaining in the game.
Warner Pacific tied the game just nine seconds into the fourth quarter on a layup from senior forward Hannah Myers, then retook the lead for a final time with a pair of free throws from Jackson. The Knights and Wolves simply played a game of back-and-forth for the remainder of the game, with the Knights stretching the lead all the way to 12 points with 16 seconds remaining, before Robles knocked down a three-pointer to end the game at 66-57.
Harry led the Knights in scoring with 17 points in 32 minutes played, all while dishing out seven assists to end the afternoon as the assists leader. Freshman forward Bobbi Clark came off the bench to give Coach Gregg some crucial minutes with multiple starters in foul trouble early, setting career-highs in nearly every statistical category, most notably the 11 points, six rebounds, and pair of assists in 17 minutes for the Las Vegas, Nev. native.
Casem finished with a game-high 18 points for the Wolves, shooting over 50% from the field and adding six rebounds to the mix in nearly a complete game for the junior. Robles ended with 17 points of her own, along with seven rebounds and a blocked shot. Wolves’ guard Carolina Montes impressed in a reserve role for WWU, scoring 16 points, grabbing six boards, and dealing out five dimes in the road effort.
The Warner Pacific Women’s Basketball team will be back in action tomorrow, Saturday, January 29th, at C.C. Perry Gym to host the #22 Lewis-Clark State College Warriors, who enter this week of conference play as the only Cascade Collegiate Conference (CCC) team in the NAIA Top 25. The Knights will be looking for the upset win on their home court starting at 3pm PDT.
