Jan. 11, 2004

Box Score

LAS VEGAS - UNLV received a pair of 20+ scoring, 10+ rebound performances from Sherry McCracklin and RanDee Henry, helping the Lady Rebels hold off Northern Arizona 67-60 on Sunday afternoon in women's collegiate basketball action from the Cox Pavilion. With their sixth straight win, UNLV improves to 11-2 on the year, and are a perfect 8-0 at home, while Northern Arizona fell to 6-6.

Henry led all scorers with 25 points, and was a career-high 14-of-16 at the free throw line, which tied the Cox Pavilion record and was one off the school record of 15 made free throws. She also added 10 rebounds for her fourth double-double of the season. McCracklin tallied a season-high 22 points on 9-of-13 shooting from the floor, grabbed 13 rebounds for her conference-high 10th double-double of the year, and blocked four shots. Sheena Moore joined the two junior forwards in double figures with 10 points, as UNLV's top three scorers on the season scored 85 percent (57) of the Lady Rebels' points for the afternoon.

McCracklin and Henry combined to score 21 of UNLV's first 22 points of the game, and a jumper from Kameca Simmons gave the Lady Rebels their largest lead of the game at 12, 24-12 with 7:04 left in the first half. UNLV led 30-22 with under three minutes left, but an 8-0 Northern Arizona run on a three-point play, a layup, and a three-pointer at the first half buzzer from Natalie Metz tied the score at 30-30 entering the halftime break.

UNLV opened up the second half on a 13-2 run over the first six minutes for a 43-32 lead, and led 50-40 with 11:30 left on a pair of Henry free throws. The Lumberjacks then began to find their shots on offense, hitting four mid-range jumpers to spark a 10-2 run, coming within two at 52-50 with nine minutes to play. The score remained tight for the rest of the game, and an Alyssa Wahl jumper cut the lead to just one, 59-58 with 2:37 on the clock. The teams then traded baskets, and Henry nailed two free throws for a three-point UNLV lead, 63-60, with 1:45 left. The Lumberjacks missed their next three shots, and McCracklin sealed the game by hitting two free throws with 17 seconds on the clock, and a layup from Henry at the buzzer gave UNLV the seven-point victory.

UNLV shot 43.4 percent for the game, and hit 19-of-27 at the line for 70.4 percent. The Lady Rebels also held a 43-39 edge on the boards. The two teams combined for 29 turnovers in the first half (16 for NAU, 13 for UNLV), and 37 for the game, as UNLV committed 20 while the Lumberjacks turned the ball over just once in the second stanza.

Laura Dinkins posted a double-double of 12 points and 13 rebounds to pace Northern Arizona. Also in double figures was Lacey Tolbert with 15, and Alexis Rhodes, who fouled out with 12 points and seven rebounds. NAU shot 36.8 percent for the game, including 29.7 in the second half, and were just 1-of-8 from behind the arc.

The Lady Rebels open their Mountain West Conference schedule at home on Saturday, Jan. 17, as they host San Diego State at 7:30 pm in the Cox Pavilion.