Anissa Behymer-Smith put Multnomah ahead 9-5 early and contributed 8 points and 4 rebounds in the Lions' 66-45 home loss to #24 Northwest Christian Friday.
NW CHRISTIAN 66, MULTNOMAH 45: Turnovers Costly in Lions’ Loss to #24 Beacons
PORTLAND, Ore. – Outshooting and out-rebounding Northwest Christian University, Multnomah University held its own with the 24
th-ranked Beacons, but a huge difference in turnovers proved costly as the Lions fell 66-45 in a Cascade Collegiate Conference women's basketball game Friday evening here at Lytle Gym.
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Valerie Wakefield free throw and back-to-back layups by
Anissa Behymer-Smith gave Multnomah an early 9-5 lead at 4:18 of the opening period, but the Beacons scored the final seven points of the period to go up 12-9, Niki Duncan's three-pointer at 2:02 putting the visitors ahead. Wakefield gave the Lions the lead twice 14-13 and 16-15 with baskets in the second quarter, but again the Beacons closed with a 7-0 run to lead 27-18 at the break.
After being held to a .306 shooting percentage (11-36) in the first half, Northwest Christian finally found its shooting touch in the third quarter, hitting .588 (10-17) to out-score Multnomah 22-11 and pull away to a 49-29 lead going into the final period. The Lions trimmed the deficit to 13 at 53-40 on a
Faith Kraatz layup with 6:06 remaining, but the Beacons pulled away again with a 13-5 stretch to end the game.
--- By the Numbers: Wakefield was the only Lion in double figures with 12 points, hitting 5-of-8 from the field, and tied for game-high honors with six assists.
Paris Sanders had a game-high nine rebounds, while Kraatz posted eight rebounds, three steals and two blocked shots.
Bethany George also had a pair of stuffs. The Lions shot .365 (19-52) from the field to .357 (25-70) for the Beacons and won the battle of the boards 43-41, but committed twice as many turnovers (28-14) as NCU scored 31 points to only seven for Multnomah off those errors.
Conner Borigo came off the bench to lead the Beacons with 18 points, while Morgan McKinney added 13, Duncan 11, and Anamaria Virjoghe 10. McKinney had team-high seven rebounds and three steals, with Duncan also making three steals. Katerina Brejchova passed out six assists, and Virjoghe had three blocks.
Multnomah is now 0-16 on the season and 0-6 in the conference, while Northwest Christian climbed to 12-1 overall and 5-1 in the league.
--- Next: Multnomah hosts Corban University and Northwest Christian goes to Warner Pacific College Saturday, both CCC games at 5:30, followed by men's CCC games at 7:30 p.m.