Box Score

Box score in PDF  I  HTML  I  Photo Gallery

TAHLEQUAH, Okla. – The Northeastern State women's basketball team defeated Central Oklahoma 64-58 Wednesday in front of a capacity crowd in the final game inside legendary Jack Dobbins Field House.
 
The RiverHawks (19-7, 14-4 MIAA) clinched the No. 3 seed in next week's MIAA Championship, while the Bronchos (9-16, 2-15 MIAA) lost for the 14th time in their last 15 matchups.
 
The three seniors who played their final game inside JDF and were honored following the game were Sarah Green, Taylor Lewis and Tosha Tyler. The trio combined for a career 46-3 home record and has now won 97 games together. They finished their senior year 11-0 at home.
 
They combined for 42 points, led by a game-high 21 from Tyler. Lewis added 15 and seven rebounds, and Green recorded six points and seven boards.
 
NSU shot 47 percent (24-for-51) from the field, 40 percent (8-for-20) from beyond the arc and 89 percent (8-for-9) at the charity stripe.
 
Central Oklahoma shot 43 percent (23-for-54) from the field, 23 percent (5-for-22) from downtown and 64 percent (7-for-11) at the line.
 
The Bronchos were led by Alyssa Fuxa, who finished with 14 points. Britney Morgan added 12 and Jill Bryan dropped 11 for the visitors.
 
UCO found the early advantage, jumping out to an early 13-6 lead following a Bryan layup at the 14:58 mark.
 
Another Bryan bucket at 7:46 gave the road squad a 24-14 cushion, but Northeastern State was able to dwindle the lead down to just 29-27 at intermission.
 
NSU came out of the locker room the aggressor, and the home side was able to tie the game at 17:30 with a jumper from Tyler. A Lewis layup on the next possession gave the RiverHawks their first lead since early in the contest.

The two sides went back and forth the next 13 minutes, but a jumper from Tyler at 3:44 gave Northeastern State the lead for good.
 
Sophomore guard Chelsey Stricklen hit a big bucket with a little less than two minutes to play to give the home side a three-point lead, and Lewis connected on a contested three-point shot with 29 seconds left to ice the game.
 
The RiverHawks did not allow Central Oklahoma to score on any of its final six possessions. Savannah Hamilton hit a jumper at the buzzer, but the result was already decided as NSU took the six-point triumph.
 
Northeastern State will sit out both the final weekend of the regular season and the opening round of the MIAA Championship. The team will next compete in the MIAA Quarterfinals March 8 in Kansas City. The RiverHawks will await the winner of the 6 vs. 11 matchup, which will be contested at the top seed's site March 5.
 
NORTHEASTERN STATE COACH RANDY GIPSON
On the game…
“This was such a hard-fought game. It is a rivalry game; a Bedlam game of sorts. We knew (Central Oklahoma) would come in here and really give a stout effort tonight. They made shots. It was a struggle all the way. I was proud of our team for making a number of plays coming down the stretch. Chelsey Stricklen hit a big basket. Fittingly, Taylor Lewis, with the career she's had in here, hits the big shot near the end to kind of ice the game for us. I'm proud of our kids, this was a good win.”
 
On Sarah Green's late offensive rebound…
“Our seniors have been good for us all year long, and they showed some grit there. We were running on fumes at times, and they fought through it. We made just enough plays and got just enough stops to finish it off.”
 
On if there was pressure with all the festivities…
“You have so many things going on that you worry about being distracted a little bit. I felt we were tentative to start the game. I don't feel like we came out playing as hard as we would like to. Maybe it was because our minds have been on a lot of different things. That could play into it, but once we saw what kind of fight we had on our hands tonight, our kids buckled down and played hard. The second half was back and forth. Give (UCO) credit, they made a lot of plays to stay close with us. I'm glad we just made a couple more than they did.”
 
On locking up the No. 3 seed in the MIAA Championship…
“We're excited about having the bye and having the guaranteed trip to Kansas City. I think that's a plus. Besides trying to win the league championship, that's the next most important thing. We've put ourselves in a good position now where we can have some time to really prepare for this tournament and practice well. We're pleased with the position we have gotten ourselves into.”
 
-GoRiverHawksGo.com-