North Platte – The North Platte Community College Lady Knights basketball team (11-9, 1-1 Region IX Division II, 2-1 NCCAC) defeated the McCook Community College Lady Indians (3-19, 0-3 NCCAC) in overtime Wednesday night at McDonald-Belton Gymnasium 64-58 after out-scoring the Lady Indians 9 to 3 in the overtime period.
The game is a Nebraska Community College Athletic Conference (NCCAC) and the win gives the Lady Knights a 2-1 record while dropping the Lady Indians to 0-3.
The Lady Knights and Lady Indians both struggled to gain an offensive rhythm. Both teams broke the 10 point mark within seconds as both teams hit 3-pointers to break a 7 to 7 tie with 12:23 remaining in the first half. The Lady Knights used a 6-0 run to gain an eight point lead near the end of the first half before a Lady Indians basket made the halftime score 26-20.
In the second half, it was again a defensive struggle with the Lady Knights able to maintain their lead and stretch it out to 11 points at 49-38. The Lady Knights struggled to hit free throws down the stretch and gave the Lady Indians a chance. McCook was able to tie the game with 30 seconds remaining with North Platte having one more chance to win the game in regulation. After a Lady Knights timeout, Aliyah Brown was unable to convert and the game headed into overtime.
In overtime, the Lady Knights took control early to win the game by six points as they converted free throws down the stretch to preserve the victory and add a game in the win column of the NCCAC standings.
“I thought we shot well from the field and played good defense,” said head coach Richard Thurin. “It was a good win for our team with a huge game coming up Saturday.”
The Lady Knights were led by Courtney Widick who finished with 18 points on 6 of 13 shooting. Aliyah Brown was the only other Lady Knight in double-figures with 12 points. Leading scorer DaVontaye Merritt was held to only 6 points but contributed 11 rebounds.
Mary-Ann Frederick led the Lady Indians with 14 points and nine rebounds. Cydnee Ceballos was the only other Lady Indian in double-figures as she finished with 12 points and eight rebounds.
The Lady Knights finish out the week hosting the Central Community College Lady Raiders (16-6, 1-0 Region IX Division II, 2-0 NCCAC) on Saturday Feb. 1 at 1 p.m. The Lady Knights fell 67-74 two weeks ago in Columbus. The game is very important in the Region IX Division II standings and the NCCAC standings.
The game with Central Community College will also be the annual Girl Scout Night with Girl Scouts getting into the game. After the game, the Lady Knights will sign autographs for the Girl Scouts.
The game with Central Community College will be broadcast live online with links available on the Knights website (www.npccknights.com) through the partnership with Coaches Aid and ASBN.