The SFU Clan women’s basketball team can say they got their first win of the Great Northwest Athletic Conference campaign the hard way. after rallying to edge the Alaska Nanooks 79-77 on Saturday.
A balanced mix of rookies and veterans paced the Clan offense against Alaska, as freshman Tia Tsang led the Clan with 16 points on a 6-of-14 shooting binge. Fellow newbie Ozi Nwabuko came just shy of a double-double, posting 15 points and nine rebounds, while seniors Ellen Kett (13 points, seven assists) and Meg Wilson (12 points) also hit the double-digit plateau.
As reliable as the veterans always are for SFU, it was the freshmen who stole the show late.
After a wild first three quarters, the Clan entered the final frame down 55-50. Despite a couple of early buckets from Kett and Nwabuko, SFU found themselves trailing by five with just over six minutes to play.
Tsang then hit a couple of difficult layups to pull the Clan within three before Wilson nailed a massive trey to get SFU square at 68-68.
After a Nanooks’ bucket made it 70-68, Tsang hit a huge triple to pull SFU up by one. Again, the Alaskans responded, going ahead 72-71. Unfazed, Tsang calmly dialled up another three-pointer to get the Clan back in front by two.
But the Nanooks remained persistent. They tied it up 76-76 but with just 16 seconds left on the clock, Nwabuko used her remarkable quickness to snare an offensive board before posting the eventual game-
winning layup. That offensive board was one of Nwabuko’s four in the final five minutes.
“It was crazy, to think we might actually walk away with a win because of those two freshmen,” said SFU head coach Bruce Langford. “Tia’s shots were absolutely clutch, and Ozi kept us alive on the offensive glass. Without either of them, we don’t get that win.”
As exciting as the finish was, the fact that the Clan had to comeback to win after their first half was surprising – SFU held a 42-35 lead at the break, only to post a 3-for-15 third quarter in terms of shooting, as they were outscored by the Nanooks 20-8 in the frame.
Despite the third-quarter lapse, the Clan, who improved to 1-1 in conference play, will happily take the win into the conference’s holiday break, as their GNAC schedule resumes on Monday, Dec. 29, when they face the Western Oregon Wolves at home in West Gym.
In the meantime, they have one non-conference test before Christmas, Dec. 19 when they host the Nova Southeastern Sharks for a 2 p.m. exhibition match.
