The Basics

• Final score: Northwest Nazarene 77, Western Oregon 59
• Records: Western Oregon 7-17, 3-14 GNAC; Northwest Nazarene 10-13, 8-9 GNAC
• Location: Monmouth, Ore. – New P.E. Building

How It Happened
Bench production for visiting Northwest Nazarene, led by 18 points from guard Lexi Tubbs, combined with pressure defense held Western Oregon in check during Thursday's 77-59 loss at the New P.E. Building.
 
A close game midway in the first quarter saw a 9-7 NNU lead after junior guard Kennedy Corrigan hit a jump shot before the Crusaders scored 15 straight to pull away to a 24-7 score in the first minutes of the second quarter. With 2:27 in the second quarter, Western Oregon trailed by 17 before closing out the half on an 8-0 run on layup from forward Leah Nicklason, a 3-pointer from freshman guard Kory Oleson and three consecutive points from junior forward Jasmine Miller.
 
During an even third quarter, Western Oregon stayed within nine points, 46-37, on a triple from junior guard Shelby Snook. NNU took control of the game with an 8-0 run over 2:30 to extend the lead to 17.
 
 Wolves' Top Performers

• Jasmine Miller was the only WOU player to score in double figures with 11 points on 4-of-7 shooting overall.
• Shelby Snook had eight points and eight rebounds in a team-high 31 minutes.
• Leah Nicklason had a career-high eight rebounds in 12 minutes off the bench.

 
For the Crusaders

• Lexi Tubbs was great off the bench for NNU scoring 18 points and pulling down seven rebounds.
• McKenna Walker posted 14 points.
• Danielle Jardine was 5-of-8 from the floor for 11 points while dishing out five assists.

 
Stats of the Game

• Western Oregon won the battle of the boards 41-33 overall and 15-11 on the offensive glass.
• The Crusaders took advantage of 23 WOU turnovers scoring 25 points.
• NNU's bench accounted for 50 of the team's points.
• All 64 MSUB came from the starting five. Western Oregon's bench outscored MSUB, 31-0.

 
Coach Quotes
WOU head coach Holli Howard-Carpenter after the loss:

• "NNU is a talented, deep team and came to play tonight. Their run at the end of the first quarter really hurt us and we expended a lot of energy getting it back down to nine before the half.  I was happy with our effort in keeping it within reach for most of the third but we just didn't have enough in the tank to close the gap."
• "I thought we did a good job attacking and getting to the free throw line but we have to convert. Our turnovers hurt us as well and we spotted them 18 points in the first half alone. Although we had a better second half, we still had some scoring droughts."
• "Leah played great tonight. She really has a court presence and brings great energy for us. Kory gave us quality minutes off the bench and played with confidence."
   

Up Next
Western Oregon will play its final home game of the regular season on Saturday, Feb. 18 against Central Washington at 5:15 p.m. from the New P.E. Building.