Final Stats

Omaha, Neb. - The UNO women's basketball team outlasted former MIAA rival Northwest Missouri State in an overtime thriller, 72-70, before 817 fans at the Sapp Fieldhouse on Saturday afternoon.

In a game that featured 14 lead changes and 10 ties, the Mavericks prevailed in overtime thanks to clutch 3-pointers by Jamie Nash and Heather Pohl in the final 1:09. The win was the fourth straight for the Mavericks (7-3), and UNO is now 5-0 at home on the season. Northwest Missouri State, playing inspired basketball with a large contingent of fans on hand because of the seven native Nebraskans on its roster, dropped to 2-8 on the season.

Four Mavericks finished with double-doubles: Nash had a game-high 21 points and 11 assists; Paige Frauendorfer had 18 points and 14 rebounds; Pohl had 13 points and 10 rebounds, and Rese Huddlin had 11 points and 13 rebounds, with eight coming on the offensive end.

With UNO leading 57-53 after an old-fashioned three-point play by Huddlin, the Bearcats responded with five straight points to take a 58-57 lead with 4:32 left in regulation on baskets by Abby Henry and Shelly Martin.

Frauendorfer put UNO back on top 59-58 with a jumper from the corner after Pohl dove on the floor to secure the Mavs' 20th offensive rebound of the game. Annie Mathews then made 1-of-2 free throws on separate possessions to give the Bearcats a one-point lead, and Martin made it 62-59 with 1:52 left on a mid-range jumper.

Pohl stepped up big though, nailing a 3-pointer from the corner to tie the game with 1:34 left at 62-62. After a Bearcat miss, Henry stole the ball after the Mavs had rebounded it, and drained a pair of free throws to make it 64-62 NWMSU with 1:08 left.

The Mavs turned the ball over on the next possession, but Nash made a critical steal on the ensuing Bearcat possession and found Frauendorfer ahead for an easy lay-in to tie the game at 64-64 with 39 seconds left. Martin's 3 on the other end was long, and Nash pushed the ball up court for a final attempt, but her missed attempt came after the horn sounded, sending the game to overtime.

In overtime, the Bearcats drew first blood on two free throws by Martin with 3:28 to play. Frauendorfer cut the lead in half with a free throw. With just under two minutes to play, Zenta Liepa got her hand on a Bearcat pass, which Nash picked up and sprinted to the other end, where she was fouled on a layup attempt. Nash made one free throw to tie the game at 66-66. Northwest's Tara Roach then got open underneath for an easy two to make it 68-66 with 1:31 remaining.

But Nash knocked down a huge 3, her fourth on the day, for a 69-68 UNO lead with 1:09 left in overtime. Nash then grabbed a rebound after a Bearcat missed 3, and the Mavs ran the shot clock down, at which point Nash set up Pohl in the corner for her fourth 3-pointer of the game for a 72-68 lead with 29 seconds left. The Mavs turned the Bearcats away on their next possession, and Nash was fouled with six seconds left. Her free throw rimmed off, and the Bearcats scored their final basket with 0.8 seconds left.

The Mavericks owned a 54-30 advantage on the glass and grabbed 23 offensive rebounds. The Bearcats stayed in the game by forcing 27 UNO turnovers and by shooting 51.9 percent from the field in the first half on 14-of-27 shooting.

UNO jumped out to a 10-3 lead in the opening minutes, as Pohl and Nash each connected from 3-point land early on. But the Bearcats battled back with a 16-5 spurt to take a 19-15 lead at the 8:56 mark. The Mavericks turned the ball over nine times in the opening 12 minutes, and Northwest Missouri State took advantage with 10 points off turnovers.

But UNO settled down, recording a 10-0 run to claim a 25-19 lead with 5:32 left. Nash had seven of the 10 points. Tara Roach then scored five straight points for the Bearcats, and Martin nailed a 3-pointer to tie the game at 29-29 with 3:00 left.

Huddlin scored a hard-fought basket after an offensive rebound, and Frauendorfer sank a 3-pointer from the corner late in the half to put UNO up 36-35 at the break. The Mavericks dominated the glass in the half, 26-10, including 12 offensive rebounds that converted to 11 second-chance points.

The Bearcats claimed a 40-38 lead shortly after halftime. But Nash didn't let it last long, draining her third 3-pointer of the game with 16:20 left for a 41-40 lead. A baseline basket by Frauendorfer extended the lead to three, 43-40. After the teams traded two free throws, Nash made a steal, then fed Taijhe Kelly underneath for a layup for a 47-42 lead at 13:27. 

But the Bearcats answered with a Martin 3-pointer, a Candace Boeh free throw and a long two by Abby Henry to reclaim the lead at 48-47. On UNO's next possession, Huddlin grabbed her seventh offensive board of the game and put a layup in to regain the lead for UNO, 49-48, with 10:39 remaining.

Ashleigh Nelson knocked down a long 3-pointer to give Northwest Missouri State a 51-49 lead with 9:36 left. Henry added two free throws for a 53-49 Bearcat lead with 8:42 to play, matching their largest lead of the game. But an 8-0 UNO run gave the Mavs a 57-53 lead, capped by Huddlin's heroic three-point play where she ripped the ball out of the hands of a Bearcat after a missed UNO free throw and scored while being fouled.

UNO's top three scorers on the season led the Mavs down the stretch. Pohl (6), Frauendorfer (5) and Nash (4) combined for the final 15 points of the game for the Mavericks.

Martin paced the Bearcats with 19 points. Henry, who scored 33 and 31 points in her last two trips to the Sapp Fieldhouse, finished with 16.

UNO will take next week off for final exams before returning to action at Loyola Chicago on Dec. 18 at 2 p.m.