Nanooks Defeat UVSC, Advance to Championship
FAIRBANKS, AK-University of Alaska Fairbanks' women's basketball Head Coach Lynne Andrew took the patient approach.
Her team responded at halftime, scoring the first 11 points of the second half, building a 17 point lead, and holding off a late Utah Valley State rally to defeat the Wolverines, 69-59, in a first round game at the Mount McKinley Bank/North Star Invitational Tournament Friday evening at the Patty Center.
Senior center Cody Burgess (Leavenworth, WA/Wenatchee Valley CC/Cascade HS) ignited the Nanooks' second half run with a jump shot and two free throws. Senior guard Adrienne Taalak (Nuiqsut, AK/Mount Edgecumbe HS) added a pair of free throws, Burgess connected on another jumper and Taalak capped the run with a three-pointer.
UAF steadily expanded their lead, which reached 17 points at 54-37 with 7:43 remaining when Taalak made three consecutive free throws. UVSC fought back, using an 18-6 run to cut the Nanooks' advantage to 60-55 with 1:14 remaining. But Burgess made an off-balance hook shot in the lane, drew a foul and converted a three-point play with 55 seconds left, and UAF made six free throws in the final 42 seconds to clinch the victory.
Burgess and Taalak shared game scoring honors, with each scoring 25 points and combining for 50 of the Nanooks' total of 69. Miriam Palkki had 18 points for the Wolverines, while Katie Wilson added 11. Burgess had 14 rebounds as UAF outrebounded UVSC, 47-36.
"Sometimes, your biggest decision as a head coach is how to approach your team at halftime when you're not playing well," said UAF Head Coach Lynne Andrew. "You can yell at them, or you can take a more patient approach. We knew we weren't playing well, but we tried to stay positive and told them what we needed to do better."
"We missed some opportunities in the second half," said UVSC Head Coach Cathy Nixon. "We seemed to lose our focus, and Fairbanks played very well and shot the ball very well."
Alaska Fairbanks improved to 3-1 with the victory, while Utah Valley State dropped to 0-4 with the defeat. The Nanooks will play Western Carolina, a 75-73 victor against Jacksonville State, for the tournament championship at 5:00 p.m. Saturday. UVSC will play JSU for third place at 3:00 Saturday afternoon.
-UAF BASKETBALL-
