Men’s Basketball Drops Weber State Contest; Heads to Idaho State
OGDEN, Utah – The Northern
Arizona men’s basketball team was defeated by Weber State for
the second time this season 76-66 Friday night at the Dee Events
Center. The Lumberjacks were undone by 19 turnovers and a big run
by the Wildcats that broke open a close game in the second
half.
“I thought the tougher team won the ball game
tonight,” said Head Coach Mike Adras. “They played more
physical than we did and that really bothered us. A couple guys
showed up to play and a couple did not show up to play.”
Weber State (16-8, 10-2) defeated NAU earlier this season with a
similar storyline with a 21-6 run midway through the second half
for an 87-62 victory at the Walkup Skydome.
NAU (11-12, 5-7 Big Sky) fought back into the game with a strong
start in the second half, out-scoring the Wildcats 12-2 with a 10-0
run to cut the deficit to four points at 42-38. Weber answered with
back-to-back three pointers by Damian Lillard and Nick Hansen.
It sparked a 14-0 run and the Wildcats led by 18 points just as
quick as the Lumberjacks had cut the lead with their run. NAU never
got any closer than 10 points the rest of the game as Weber State
swept the regular season series with the Lumberjacks for the second
consecutive season.
“I thought we defended pretty well except for the turnovers
that resulted in breakaway layups,” said Adras. “It
hurt us. Again it was not being able to contain
penetration.”
Cameron Jones led the Lumberjacks with 24 points to go with four
rebounds and four steals. DeAngelo Jones added 12 points and Josh
Lepley contributed 11 points.
Lillard and Franklin Session combined for 48 points against the
Lumberjacks. Lillard had a game-high 26 points with five assists,
while Session scored 22 points with eight steals, the best
single-game total in a Big Sky game this season.
“Damian Lillard took over for them,” said Adras.
“It is big to have a guy who hits shots for you when your
team is rattled and needs a play. He made play after play. The
difference was the two guards, Lillard and Session. Not only
offensively but we handed the ball over too many times.”
NAU shot 55 percent from the field with five three-pointers, while
Weber State converted 51 percent with 10 three-pointers and 16
steals. The Wildcats scored 25 points off the 19 NAU turnovers in
the contest.
“You can not win when you turn the ball over 19
times,” said Adras.
NAU trailed 37-28 at the half after committing 11 turnovers in the
opening period with the help of 11 steals by the Wildcats. Cameron
Jones scored 16 points in the first half, hitting 7-of-11 shots.
The Lumberjacks led early in the contest but Weber State built a
10-point lead 10 minutes into the game. NAU cut the lead to 25-24
but was out-scored 12-4 over the final seven minutes of the half
that included a 12-0 run by the Wildcats.
NAU travels to Pocatello, Utah, to face Idaho State Saturday
night. Idaho State lost to Northern Colorado Friday night 68-59,
entering Saturday’s game with a 6-18 overall record and 3-9
in Big Sky play.
“It is a must game for them and a must game for us,”
said Adras. “There is no other way to describe it. Hopefully
we are ready to play and salvage the road trip.”
The game can be heard on the Lumberjack Radio Network on KAFF AM
930 in Flagstaff and seen on the internet on Big Sky TV. Fans
outside of Flagstaff can also listen to the game on the internet
with the call by Mitch Strohman on Stretch Internet.
