An explosive fourth quarter for Northern Colorado appeared to knock the Idaho women’s basketball team out of the game.
But freshman guard Taylor Pierce came off the bench to keep the Vandals alive with consecutive 3-pointers to send the game into overtime.
A late trey by Northern Colorado’s Savannah Scott in overtime would prove to be the deciding factor in Thursday’s matchup.
After a deep pass from junior point guard Karlee Wilson was intercepted by Scott in the waning seconds of the game, Northern Colorado clinched a 70-68 victory over the Vandals.
The win extends the Bears home game win streak to eight straight in Big Sky Conference play.
The loss drops the Vandals to 9-3 against Big Sky opponents, while Northern Colorado improves to 6-6.
Pierce finished the game with a team-leading 16 points for the Vandals. Rebecca Howell led the Bears with 15 points.
Senior guard Christina Salvatore proved to be a force in the paint for Idaho with eight rebounds and four assists. Salvatore finished the game with six of the 14 steals for Idaho
The Vandals blocked the ball on seven different occasions, while senior post Ali Forde finished with three.
Despite turning the ball over 21 times, Northern Colorado outshot Idaho 48.2 percent to 40.7 percent from the field. The Bears also converted nine 3-pointers compared to seven for Idaho.
Both teams struggled to find the hoop early in the matchup, as the teams combined for eight points in the first six minutes of play.
After a timeout by Northern Colorado, Scott and Howell jumpstarted a 7-0 run for the Bears.
Idaho was able to reduce the lead and cut the deficit to 16-10 at the end of the first quarter.
Sophomore post Geraldine McCorkell began the second quarter with a trey from the left wing.
Forde gave Idaho the lead after converting a free throw late in the second quarter. But the Bears responded with a 3-pointer from Kyleigh Hiser to enter halftime with a 29-26 lead.
The Bears shot 52.2 percent (12-of-23) from the field, while Idaho finished the half shooting 45.8 percent (11-of-24).
A set of 3-pointers from by Northern Colorado sparked a 11-4 run for the Bears in the fourth quarter to earn a 12-point lead.
Pierce came off the bench for the Vandals to reduce the deficit to 58-55.
Kianna Williams responded with yet another trey, but Idaho would score six more points to end regulation and force an overtime period.
The Vandals were unable to regain the lead in overtime and fell to Northern Colorado after a defensive effort in the final seconds could not produce a turnover.
The loss drops to Idaho’s record to 17-7 overall while Northern Colorado improves to 11-11 on the year.
The Vandals are scheduled to face North Dakota at noon Saturday in Grand Forks.
Luis Torres can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @TheLTFiles