Northern Arizona pulls away from VMI in second half for win
Nov 18, 2023, 5:03 PM | Updated: 6:08 pm
Head coach Shane Burcar of the Northern Arizona Lumberjacks talks with Oakland Fort #4 of the Northern Arizona Lumberjacks in the second half of a game against the Eastern Washington Eagles at Idaho Central Arena on March 05, 2023 in Boise, Idaho. (Photo by Tommy Martino/University of Montana/Getty Images)
(Photo by Tommy Martino/University of Montana/Getty Images)
The Northern Arizona Lumberjacks won their second game in the inaugural Arizona Tip-Off at Diamond Desert Arena, 78-69 over the VMI Keydets.
After falling to Purdue Fort Wayne 77-67 in their event opener on Friday, the Lumberjacks fell behind early to VMI down 10-4 early and down by six at other points in the first half.
When trailing 18-12, NAU started to make their push, rattling off an 11-0 run, capped off by sophomore Oakland Fort’s first of a game-high five assists on the day. The Sunnyslope High School alumnus added 13 points on an efficient 4-of-5 shooting and 3-of-4 from deep.
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The Lumberjacks never trailed again, fending off VMI efforts throughout the rest of the first half. When VMI was within two with just over 13 minutes remaining, NAU ripped off a 13-2 run.
They led comfortably the rest of the game en route to a second win in five tries on the season, including two in their last three.
Junior wing Trent McLaughlin, a Basha High School alumnus, led the Lumberjacks in scoring with 21 points on 7-of-14 shooting. He added three steals in his game-high 37 minutes.
Tyran Cook, a freshman guard, led the way for VMI with 20 points in 23 minutes off the bench.
Northern Arizona tries for their first win streak of the season as they travel to Hawai’i for a late 11:30 p.m. matchup on Tuesday.
