POCATELLO, Idaho – The Idaho State women's basketball team beat Northern Arizona, 78-65, Saturday afternoon inside Reed Gymnasium. The Bengals led by as many as 22 points and held off a late NAU surge to secure the victory.
At 5:28 left in the first quarter, Delaney Moore made a layup to give the Bengals an 11-9 lead. This sparked a 12-0 Bengal run that was highlighted by Carson Boswell and Estefania Ors combining to hit three treys on three consecutive possessions. The Bengals finished the period up 26-17.
The Orange and Black extended their lead in the second, going on a 16-8 run that was capped off by a pair of field goals from Diaba Konate to extend the lead to 18 and go into halftime with a 46-28 Bengal advantage.
Near the beginning of the third, the Bengals grew their lead to 22 at 54-32 after a jumper from Callie Bourne with 7:09 left in the period. While the Lumberjacks outscored the Bengals 16-10 over the final seven minutes of the quarter, ISU still led 62-48 at the end of the third.
In the final period, NAU cut the Bengal lead to five at 67-62 with 4:54 left in the contest. The Bengals held their ground, holding off the Lumberjacks and going on an 8-2 scoring run that was capped by a pair of free throws from Ors to seal the Bengal victory.
The Bengals finished the game shooting 56.9 percent on 29-of-51 field goals.
All five Bengal starters scored in the double digits led by Konate's 20 on six-of-13 from the field. Bourne, Ors and Goles scored 11 points each and Smith scored 10. Boswell scored a season-high eight points off the bench, going two-of-three from behind the three-point arc.
After losing the battle on the boards last night, the Bengals outrebounded the Lumberjacks 33-23. Konate finished the game with nine boards and Bourne followed with seven.
The Bengals return to action Thursday, Jan. 14 as they head to California to face the Sacramento State Hornets. Follow along at isubengals.com for information on how to follow the action.
Notes
- 8-1 is the best start to a season in program history.
- 6-0 is the best conference start for the Bengals since the 2011-12 Big Sky Championship team
- Idaho States posts have now scored 75 combined points in the last four games.
- Ellie Smith has scored 10+ points in four consecutive games.
- Idaho States posts have now scored 75 combined points in the last four games.
