FAIRBANKS, Alaska – The Alaska Nanooks women's basketball team fell in Great Northwest Athletic Conference action on Thursday night, dropping a 77-61 decision to the Simon Fraser University Clan at the Alaska Airlines Court. The loss drops Alaska's overall record to 4-13 and 0-11 in conference play, while the Clan improve to 9-10 on the season and 4-7 in league matchups.
A sharp-shooting first quarter for the Clan proved to be the turning point, as SFU outscored the Nanooks 31-16 and shooting 73.3 percent from the floor (11-for-15), while Alaska was held to only 35.3 percent from the floor (6-for-17).
The Nanooks pushed back and outscored the Clan 13-12 in the second and 21-16 in the third before SFU edged the Nooks in the fourth quarter, 18-11.
As a team, the Nanooks shot 38.1 percent from the floor (24-for-63), 30 percent from three-point range (6-for-20) and 61.6 percent from the free throw line (7-for-11). Alaska also picked up 14 offensive and 19 defensive rebounds on the night, totaling 33 boards. The Nanooks also tallied 13 assists, nine steals and one block.
The Nanooks were led offensively by sophomore guard
Lexi Carpenter, who shot 8-for-20 from the floor and 2-for-6 from beyond the arc to total 18 points on the night.
Junior forward
Sanni Salonen tied her career personal-best in points, registering 10 on the night. Salonen shot 3-for-7 from the floor and 4-for-4 from the free throw line, while also picking up six rebounds against the Clan, five of which were offensive.
The Clan was led by Sophie Swant, who tallied a game-high 25 points, while teammate Tia Tsang collected 20 points against the Nooks.
The Alaska Nanooks women's basketball team will be back in action on Saturday, Jan. 27, as they host the Western Washington Vikings in another GNAC matchup at the Alaska Airlines Court. Saturday's game will be the first of an Alaska basketball double-header with the men's team and tips-off at 5:15pm AKST.
For more information on the Alaska Nanooks women's basketball team, follow @NanooksWBB on Twitter or like the Alaska Nanooks Women's Basketball team page on Facebook.
