Box Score

FAIRBANKS, Alaska – The momentum from a big upset ran out at the worst time for the Crusaders on Saturday afternoon.

Still soaring after a 79-64 upset at No. 3-ranked Alaska Anchorage, the Northwest Nazarene women hit the court in Fairbanks against the University of Alaska and pulled away late in the first half.

NNU built a 10-point advantage and looked to be on route to a road sweep of the Alaska schools when the Nanooks turned the game around with a 16-0 run that helped Alaska score an 82-76 victory over the Crusaders in Great Northwest Athletic Conference women's basketball.

"I'm extremely disappointed in our lack of discipline offensively and our lack of energy and effort defensively," NNU head women's basketball coach Ryan Bragdon said. "As coaches, we didn't prepare the team how to play with any glimpse of consistency from our performance in Anchorage.

"We continually got out-worked, out-hustled, and out-executed by an Alaska team that wanted the game more than we did, especially in the second half, and that's the disappointing part," Bragdon added.

"All of those things are things within our control, and we continue to struggle with the controllables more than anything, and it's got to stop."

Things went well for NNU early, though, as the Crusaders (4-9 overall, 2-2 GNAC) erased a 19-18 deficit with a 5-1 run, a run capped by two Kate Cryderman free throws that made it 23-19.

A pair of CoCo Gall freebies pushed the advantage to 31-25 and were part of a 9-1 run, which Kaitlyn Merritt finished with a 3-pointer, giving the Crusaders a comfortable 36-26 lead with a half-minute until halftime.

Then the game changed oh so quickly as the Nanooks (10-4, 2-2) scored the final three points of the opening session, and stretched their run to 16 straight, taking a 42-36 lead on a two Jordan Wilson free throws 3 minutes into the second half.

NNU closed to a single point down four times over the next 17 minutes, but never wrested the lead away for the Nanooks.

"Alaska had players step up and hit shots when they were needed, which is why they've won 10 games already this season," Bragdon said. 

Taylor Simmons led NNU with 20 points and six steals while Cryderman added 15 points and seven rebounds, Gall had 13 points and seven boards and Elli Logan chipped in 11 points and nine rebounds.

The Crusaders now return home for their first game at the Johnson Sports Center since Dec. 6 when they host Simon Fraser on Thursday, Jan. 8, for "Fan Appreciation Night."

General admission to Thursday's game is free for all fans.