It was a tale of two halves for the Western Nebraska Community College women's basketball team, but the first half scoring spree and a solid defensive effort helped the Cougar women to a 66-50 South Sub-region win over McCook Community College Friday at Cougar Palace.
The win keeps the Cougars unbeaten at 4-0 in South Sub-region play. WNCC also captured their 20th win of the season in the game they led from start to finish.
WNCC head coach Isaac Lu said his team had a strong first quarter, which was the key to the win.
"We had a great first half. We came out strong. We limited them to 10 points in the first quarter and nine in the second. Anytime you can keep a team under 10 in a quarter that is pretty good defense" Lu said. "We created some big separation there in the first half. We allowed them get some rhythm in the second half, but we had players step up and make plays to respond. It was a solid effort overall."
WNCC jumped out to a quick 6-0 lead before McCook cut the deficit to 8-6. WNCC responded with a 9-0 run that included back-to-back 3-pointers by Mackenzie Joseph. The Cougars closed out the first quarter on a 5-0 run to lead 22-10.
The second quarter saw the Cougars jump out to a 30-13 lead on back-to-back buckets by Joseph. WNCC closed out the second quarter on a 10-2 run that saw Helena Kuck bury a 3-pointer at the buzzer for the 40-19 halftime lead.
The third quarter saw McCook open with a 9-0 run to trail 40-28. WNCC responded with a 7-0 run and then the two squads traded points as WNCC led 53-37 after the third quarter.
The fourth quarter saw each team score 13 points as WNCC got the win.
WNCC shot 33 percent from the field and were 7-of-25 from beyond the arc. McCook shot 34 percent from the field and were 5-of-13 from the 3-point line. Both teams were 13-of-18 from the charity stripe.
WNCC won the rebound battle 45-40. Adelina Urtane led the way with 11 points followed by Joseph with five.
WNCC had three in double figures. Joseph led the way with 16 points including four 3-pointers. Ebere Egbirika and Laura Montiel each had 10 points. Egbirika had three rebounds in the contest, while Montiel had four rebounds, four assists, and seven steals.
WNCC will be back in action on Friday when they travel to Otero College for a women's and men's doubleheader.
McCook 10 9 18 13 – 50
WNCC (20-3) 22 18 13 13 – 66
MCCOOK
Suzan Sisman 4, Audra Vine 13, Hanne Alvarez-Verdaguer 3, Rebecca Dunn 1, Gemma Gruettner-Bacoul 27, Carlota Aliaga-Alonso 2.
WNCC
Amiyah Donaldson 9, Ebere Egbirika 10, Keyla Cervantes 2, Helena Kuck 6, Gal-La Font 6, Laura Montiel 10, Faith Walker 7, Mackenzie Joseph 16.