Lopers Earn Road Win

Lopers Earn Road Win
Loper Forward Elisa Backes-Photo Courtesy UNK Sports
January 25th, 2022 | Peter Yazvac

Kearney, Neb. – The now 17th/14th-ranked Nebraska-Kearney women’s basketball team shot 54 percent from the field and got 33 bench points to defeat Northeastern State, 58-46, Monday evening in Tahlequah, Okla.

This game was originally set for January 3rd but got postponed due to COVID-19 issues within the RiverHawks program. The two teams will meet again February 10th in Kearney.

UNK (16-3, 11-2) records its 16th straight win over the RiverHawks (4-13, 2-9) and also improves to 7-0 in true road games this winter. The Lopers 54% shooting is its second-best effort of the year as 25 of 46 shots fell. Take away a 2 of 10 effort from long range and the mark zoomed up to 64 percent. Not surprisingly, the Lopers pounded the paint to the tune of 40 points.

Never trailing, the Blue & Gold got 17 points, four rebounds, three dimes and two swats from reserve junior forward Elisa Backes (Salina, Kans.). She went 7 of 12 from the field over 30 minutes and now has 100 made threes, 102 blocks, 124 assists and 96 steals in her career. Next, reserve point guard Sarah Schmitt (Swisher, Ia.) had eight points, three boards and two thefts in 21 minutes of work with reserve forward Shiloh McCool (Pleasant Hill, Ia.) at seven points on 3 of 3 shooting.

Leading by as many as 15 points, UNK was up 12-8 after the first 10 minutes and by a 30-21 mark at the half. The Lopers only two threes came in the second quarter and were both made by Backes. Kearney closed the second on a 12-4 run and zoomed to an 11-point lead early in the third only to see the ‘Hawks trail by two, 39-37, with 2:08 remaining in the quarter. Backes responded with back-to-back jumpers and the Kearney advantage moved back to double digits by the fourth. 

Among the starters, junior wing Klaire Kirsch (Rapid City, SD) was close to another double double (11 points & nine rebounds). NSU had eight different players between four-eight points, posted a minus seven rebounding margin and attempted just five freebies. That ties for the fewest by a Loper opponent this year.

In a game with MIAA and Central Region implications, UNK hosts the rival Fort Hays State Tigers Saturday afternoon.
 
 

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