Stifling defense helps Knights take down Storm

Beatrice, Neb. – Jada Ballard used her second career double-double to power North Platte to a 66-52 win over Southeast Community College on Saturday afternoon.

"Proud of our effort today," said head coach Jeff Thurman. "We did a tremendous job on the defensive end and held a talented team to 20 points below their scoring average."

North Platte had an uphill battle, as Southeast jumped out to a 5-2 lead in the opening 6:43 of the first quarter. The Knights struggled offensively as their opening three possessions failed to net any points.

Kayla Pope brought the road team back to within one, before Southeast extended their lead to seven inside the final two minutes. Knights narrowed the deficit back to one on a layup by Pope, but Southeast responded by pushing their lead back to five by the end of the quarter, 15-10.

North Platte went to work on the boards in the second quarter as second chance opportunities helped the Knights cut into the Storm lead. Trailing by two inside six minutes to play, the Knights applied tough man-to-man pressure, which forced Southeast out of their gameplan.

The Southeast margin never grew over four points during the stretch, as a 6-2 burst by the Knights gave the road team the lead at the halftime break, 28-26.

Knights never trailed in the second half, pushing their lead out to twelve by the end of the third quarter. The lead grew to six on an offensive putback by Jordyn Moon inside the opening two minutes. Tough defensive pressure limited the offensive chances for the Storm, as the lead grew to twelve after Ballard chipped in six points of their 12-2 run to put the Knights up 47-35.

North Platte carried the momentum into the final ten minutes. Pope kept the Knights rolling by driving to the basket and finishing her contested layup with 8:32 to play. The lead grew to 17 inside the final four minutes, before Southeast trimmed the deficit down by going 3-of-4 from the free throw line in the final thirty seconds.

With the victory, North Platte improved to 2-0 against NJCAA DII Region IX opponents this season.

A total of six Knights scored in the contest, including 14 points on 4-of-11 shooting by Pope, while Ballard added 13 points, 11 rebounds and two steals. Diamond Moore-Heath contributed 12 points and 11 rebounds for her nineteenth career double-double, while Moon and Fumnanya Ijeh each pitched in 10 points, respectively.

Knights (14-6) hit the road again on Tuesday, Jan. 25 for a matchup with McCook Community College. Tip is set for 5:30 p.m. inside the Peter and Dolores Graff Events Center.