Knights hold off late rally to defeat Plainswomen

North Platte, Neb. – Kayla Pope matched her career-high 25 points, as the Knights held off a late rally by the Plainswomen of Northeastern Junior College on Tuesday night, 57-49.

"It was a great defensive effort tonight," said head coach Jeff Thurman. "We forced 19 turnovers and won the battle on the boards, which helped us secure the win."

North Platte dominated on the glass, 52-39, as second chance opportunities helped the Knights control the flow of the game.

A quiet start for the Knights over the opening minutes helped the Plainswomen jump out to a four-point lead. A short 3-0 burst brought the Knights back within one, as Diamond Moore-Heath connected on an off-balanced shot in the paint. The Plainswomen answered with a step back three inside the closing seconds to stretch their lead back to four at the end of the opening quarter, 10-6.

A 13-2 run to open the second quarter, gave the Knights a seven-point advantage with 5:30 to play. The strong defense applied by the Knights clamped down on the Northeastern offense, limiting the road team to only five more points over the remainder of the quarter. Back-to-back three pointers by Janay Brauer kept the Knights offense running, as they closed the quarter with a nine-point advantage.     

Out of the break, the Knights extended their lead to fourteen on a three by Pope. Northeastern found some momentum and cut the deficit to six with 7:13 remaining. Knights picked up the defensive pressure and managed to extend their lead to eight, as teams headed into the final quarter.

Northeastern found their rhythm offensively as they trimmed the deficit to two over the opening four minutes of the fourth quarter. The game remained tight until Pope connected on an open three from the right wing to push the lead back to six. Down the stretch, the Knights defense picked up and held off the late charge by the Plainswomen to seal the win.

Knights (16-8) hit the road for a pivotal game against DII Region IX opponent Central Community College on Saturday, Feb. 5. Tip is set for 2 p.m. inside the Raider Field House in Columbus.