Stars shine in second half; Oklahoma City shoots
its way out of first-half deficit, goes on to defeat Lewis-Clark
State 97-80
Copyright of
The Trib
JACKSON, Tenn. -- A strong start gave Lewis-Clark State designs
on an upset, and the Warriors carried that optimism, to an extent,
into halftime.
But Oklahoma City dashed any remaining hopes after the break.
The Stars scored 58 second-half points and pulled away for a
97-80 victory over the Warriors on Thursday morning in the first
round of the NAIA Division I women's basketball tournament.
L-C, making its ninth national-tournament appearance, ends its
season at 22-11. Oklahoma City, seeking its eighth consecutive berth
in this tournament's title game, not to mention its seventh
championship, moves to 29-6 and into the second round, where it will
play Azusa Pacific today.
The Warriors, who received the tournament's last at-large berth,
surprised fourth-ranked Oklahoma City with a 14-4 opening run.
L-C, which shot 62 percent from the field in the opening 20
minutes, led by as much as 14 points, 34-20 with just over five
minutes left in the first half.
But Oklahoma City curbed the Warriors' enthusiasm in the period's
waning moments. The Stars buried four 3-pointers in the last 1:20 to
trail 42-39 at halftime.
"We played probably the best half of basketball we played all
year in the first half," L-C coach Brian Orr said.
The teams essentially played give-and-take through the first 6
1/2 minutes of the second half, a span that featured five ties and
five lead changes.
A free throw by Kendra West created what would be the game's last
tie, 55-all, with 13:32 remaining.
Fifteen seconds later, Kenzi Bond drained a 3-pointer to give
Oklahoma City an advantage it would not relinquish.
L-C stayed within striking distance until the Stars reeled off a
7-0 flurry over 2 1/2 minutes, putting them up 81-69 with 5:43 to
play. The Warriors would get no closer than nine points thereafter.
L-C shot just 27 percent from the field in the second half, and
committed 13 of their 20 turnovers after intermission.
With the Warriors defensively focusing on OCU's interior threats,
the Stars turned to their perimeter shooters. They reaped 12
3-pointers, seven of which came in the second half.
"And when we extended our defense, they went inside," Orr said.
"It was kind of pick your poison."
Four of OCU's starters cracked double-digit scoring. Their two
posts, 6-foot-2 Sadio Sangare and 6-4 Sy Mariam, scored 22 and 19
points, respectively. Guard Pabliana Lae contributed 17 points,
connecting on 5 of 8 3-pointers.
The Stars shot 57 percent in the second half.
The Warriors countered with a productive pair of their own.
Sophomore post Ashley Baker and junior guard Nikki Haerling both
scored 24 points, and Baker corralled a game-high 13 rebounds.
"Our players were just tremendous in terms of their intensity and
their effort," Orr said. "It was a great challenge, trying to
overcome a tradition. ... We played with no fear. I don't think I've
ever been prouder of a team and how they responded to a challenge."
LEWIS-CLARK ST. (22-11)
Kalbfleisch 2-9 2-2 8, K. West 2-6 1-1 5, Baker 11-16 2-3 24,
Haerling 7-19 9-10 24, Fulbright 2-5 4-4 9, Hart 0-0 0-0 0, Wittmer
0-1 0-0 0, Yancheva 1-1 2-2 5, Boggs 0-1 0-0 0, V. West 0-2 0-0 0,
Jackson 0-0 1-2 1, McCauley 2-3 0-0 4. Totals 27-63 19-24 80.
OKLAHOMA CITY (29-6)
Bond 3-10 0-0 9, Doh 5-8 6-9 16, Lae 6-9 0-0 17, Sangare 7-15
7-11 22, Sy 8-13 3-7 19, Cornelius 0-0 0-0 0, Johnson 0-2 0-0 0,
DeVance 1-3 0-0 2, Araujo 3-6 0-0 9, Brown 1-1 1-2 3, Silva 0-4 0-0
0. Totals 34-71 17-29 97.
Halftime score -- LCSC 42, OCU 39. Total fouls -- LCSC 17, OCU
18. Fouled out -- none. Technical fouls -- none. Three-point goals
-- LCSC 7-23 (Haerling 3-9, Kalbfleisch 2-8, Fulbright 1-1, Yancheva
1-1, K. West 0-2, V. West 0-1, Wittmer 0-1). OCU 12-34 (Lae 5-8,
Araujo 3-6, Bond 3-10, Sangere 1-3, Doh 0-2, Silva 0-2, Johnson 0-2,
DeVance 0-1). Rebounds -- LCSC 42 (Baker 13), OCU 40 (Sy 9). Assists
-- LCSC 14(Haerling, Kalbfleisch 3), OCU 25 (Bond, Silva 5).
