Women’s Basketball vs Northern Kentucky | Photo by Monica Brutto | The Wright State Guardian
The Wright State University women’s basketball team returned home to host the Northern Kentucky Norse on Thursday. The Raiders have been finding footing throughout the season, coming into Thursday with a 3-19 overall record and 2-10 in Horizon League play.
Coming into the game
WSU entered Thursday following a resounding 83-49 victory over Robert Norris last Saturday, looking for consecutive victories for the first time of the season. WSU would go on to win against the Norse 80-70.
A quick start
WSU started the game very quickly on the offensive side, shooting 58.3% from the field. Both teams were exchanging shots early on, with five different ties and four different lead changes.
WSU ranks fifth in the nation and first in the HL with 9.6 three-point conversions per game. With other teams beginning to take notice of the Raiders three-point scoring abilities, WSU has started expanding talents and driving down low and scoring inside the paint.
The Raiders had three players score double digits led by senior guard Bryce Nixon with 23 points from 8-15 shooting.
“I think we’re a really good three-point shooting team, and teams know that now, so they are going to try and take that away,” Nixon mentioned. “We are very capable and driving in the paint.”
The Raider team separated itself from the Norse in the third quarter after going on a seven-point scoring run and out-scoring the Norse 19-12 in the third quarter.
WSU had a great evening at the free throw line, converting 16-20. The Norse went 21-34 and struggled to get back into the game.
“They are easy free points, and you have to make them down the stretch,” Kacee Baumhower added. “I think that game is completely different if they make more.”
With the Raiders being known for an ability to shoot the ball from deep, the team needed to find another way to get points on the board.
“Ball screens were a huge part of today’s game plan, and they switched how they guarded it, so we were playing cat and mouse there with the ball screen game,” head coach Kari Hoffman added following the victory.
The end of the game was drawn out, with many fouls against WSU and scoring plays under official review. The delay did not appear to slow the Raiders down, as the team hung on to claim the 80-70 victory.
“That was one of the first times all year where we have been up in that situation, and we knew on the flip side how to handle it,” Baumhower mentioned.
Growing teamwork
The team consists of one returning player, six freshmen and seven transfers. As the team has had more time to play with one another, the chemistry has continued to rapidly develop.
“The biggest thing is trusting the process and trusting each other. I think we have gotten to the point in the season where it is all paying off,” Baumhower stated.
The victory comes one day after “National Women in Sports Day,” adding a nice appeal to the victory.
“I think every day being a woman playing sports is important, but getting a win after that is always fun,” Nixon added.
WSU has started to find the light at the end of the tunnel and will continue growing as a team moving toward the final stretch of the season.
“It wasn’t a surprise to us, and I think now we are starting to put the defensive end together, ” Hoffman stated. “They are buying into the game plan and executing it more consistently.”
