OMAHA, Neb. – The Omaha womens basketball program fell 74-65 inside Baxter Arena against North Dakota State Thursday evening.
The Mavericks fall to 6-16 overall and 1-8 in league play. North Dakota State improves to 7-15 overall and 4-6 in league action.
LEADERS FOR OMAHA
Rayanna Carter posted a career-night with 20 points on 8-for-11 shooting three assists and two boards. Mariah Murdie recorded 13 points on 6-for-12 shooting.
LEADERS FOR NDSU
The Bison had four double-digit scorers on the night. Sofija Zivaljevic and Michelle Gaislerova posted 15 points apiece, while the duo of Ryan Cobbins and Rylee Nudell posted 12 points each. Gaislerova went a perfect 9-for-9 at the charity stripe in her teams win.
TEAM STATS
North Dakota State went high volume at the free throw line with a 30-for-33 (90.9%) performance. The Mavericks went 11-for-15 at the charity stripe. Omaha committed 13 turnovers to the Bisons 15 and won the battle in the paint 36-25. The Mavericks shot 25-for-60 (41.7%) from the field and 4-of-15 from beyond the arc (26.7%). NDSU went 21-for-43 from the field (48.8%) and was 2-for-7 (28.6%) from three.
INSIDE THE FIRST HALF
Three minutes into the game both teams were tied at 7-all. With 50 seconds to go in the quarter, Claire Killian made a layup that gave Omaha a 20-15 lead. Despite a pair of free throws from NDSU, the Mavericks held on to a 20-17 lead after one. NDSU outscored Omaha 19-15 in the second quarter. Both team traded buckets throughout the frame. A pair of Pilakouta free throws cut the NDSU lead to just one at the half (36-25).
INSIDE THE SECOND HALF
Only a combined 18 point happened in the third quarter – even at 9-9. NDSUs Ryan Cobbins at the 3:45 mark in the third, but Ella Ogier answered with a three of her own. After three, the Bison held a 45-44 lead. Omaha regained its first lead of the half at the 9:34 mark in the third when Murdie made a layup in the paint (46-45). The Bison, however, scored four-straight, but a Josie Filer three put the Mavericks back ahead 51-49 with 7:48 to go. Omaha tied the score at 51-51 with 7:11 to go, but NDSU never relinquished the lead from there as they closed out the game with 11 made free throws.
LOOKING AHEAD
The Mavericks hit the road for a trip to Brookings with a Saturday, Feb. 8, showdown against South Dakota State at 2 p.m.
