NORTHERN ARIZONA’S HOT SHOOTING SINKS MEN’S BASKETBALL

1/18/2009

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Northern Arizona’s Matt Johnson led all players with 20 points and the Lumberjacks knocked down 15-of-26 shots (.577) from the three-point line on the way to an 89-64 victory over Sacramento State in a Big Sky Conference men’s basketball game Sunday afternoon at the Hornets Nest.

Northern Arizona scorched the nets all afternoon, finishing the game shooting 64.8 percent (35-of-54) from the field, 57.7 percent (15-of-26) from the three-point line and a perfect 4-of-4 from the free throw line. Of the Lumberjacks’ 89 points, 79 came from either the three-point line (45) or inside the paint (34), as the team did not attempt many mid-range jumpers. NAU shot 60.0 percent (18-30) from the floor in the first half, and 70.8 percent (17-24) in the second half.

After Sacramento State took its largest lead of the game at 16-10 with 15:03 remaining in the first half, Northern Arizona responded with a 21-4 run that spanned 6:58 of the first stanza to take a 31-20 lead at the 7:55 mark. During the run, NAU buried five three-pointers, including three from Josh Wilson. The Lumberjacks stretched their first-half lead to as many as 18 points before the Hornets got a three-pointer at the buzzer by Jared Stigall to trail at the break, 48-33.

The Hornets whittled down the lead to 11 points (50-39) with 16:34 remaining in the game, before Northern Arizona went on another run, this time a 13-0 spurt spanning just 2:50 of game clock to take a commanding 63-39 lead with 13:12 left. Sacramento State never got any closer than within 20 points of NAU’s lead the rest of the contest. The Lumberjacks led by as many as 28 points late in the second half.

With the loss, Sacramento State, which was playing the first of a season-long four-game homestand, dropped to 1-18 overall and 0-6 in the Big Sky. The Hornets lost their 13th straight game since their lone victory of the season against UC Davis on Dec. 3. In addition, the team dropped its eighth straight game against Northern Arizona (dating back to the 2005-06 season), and fell to 9-24 all-time against the Lumberjacks.

Northern Arizona improved to 5-12 overall and 2-4 in the conference. Entering today’s game, the Lumberjacks had dropped three straight with each of those losses coming by six points or less. Northern Arizona also picked up its first road win of the season as the team had been 0-10 away from home.

“Northern Arizona shots light out all game long,” Sacramento State first-year head coach Brian Katz said. “They knocked down some open looks early and that really gave them confidence. Later in the game, they were able to hit a lot of tough shots because of that confidence. We didn’t commit a ton of turnovers for the game (12), but we had five miscues during their first-half run and those really came at inopportune times.”

Johnson’s game-high 20 points came on 7-of-9 from the floor and 6-of-8 from the three-point line. Five NAU players scored in double figures, comprised of Johnson, Cameron Jones (18 points, 8-of-11 shooting), Zarko Comagic (12 points, 4-of-5 shooting), Shane Johannsen (10 points, six rebounds, 5-of-5 shooting) and Josh Lepley (10 points, six rebounds, 4-of-5 shooting).

The Lumberjacks received 44 points from their bench and outscored Sacramento State in points off turnovers by an 18-2 margin. NAU also held a 27-23 rebounding advantage over the Hornets.

Sacramento State had three players score in double figures, comprised of junior Justin Eller (14 points, four rebounds), senior Loren Leath (12 points, five rebounds and three assists) and junior Michael Selling (season-high 10 points, four rebounds). For Eller, the Big Sky’s leading rebounder, today marked just the third time all season he finished with less than five rebounds. Selling, who is still not 100 percent after missing the first 10 games of the season with a broken foot, went 3-of-5 from the field and 4-of-4 from the free throw line.

“One positive today is I really liked the play of Michael Selling,” Katz said. “He is not playing anywhere close to 100 percent right now, and you could really see his potential today.”

The Hornets shot 43.1 percent (22-51) from the field, 46.2 percent (6-13) from the three-point line and 82.4 percent (14-17) from the charity stripe.

Sacramento State resumes its homestand next week when the team hosts Weber State (Thursday, Jan. 22, 7:05 p.m.) and Idaho State (Saturday, Jan. 24, 7:05 p.m.). Only 10 games remain on the team’s regular season schedule, including five home contests and five on the road.