Five things We Learned From NAU Basketball’s Weekend Split

Photo Courtesy: NAU Athletics

The Lumberjacks were on a road kick this weekend, winning Thursday night against North Dakota, 85-75, and then lost a nail-biter to Northern Colorado, 76-74.

Here’s what we learned from the split:

Charity Stripe Adventures: The Lumberjacks were able to pull away from North Dakota Thursday thanks to shooting 26/30 from the free throw line, including the team’s final eight of 20 points. On the flip side, Northern Colorado defeated the Lumberjacks after shooting 16-18 from the charity stripe in their 76-74 win.

History for Bewernick: The 6’6”, 215 lbs Gaellan Bewernick now holds the record for most games played at NAU with 120 after playing Northern Colorado. The redshirt senior has logged 26 minutes per game in his career and six points per game.

Yanku, Yanku Very Much: Kris Yanku had himself a weekend. The sophomore has averagied 13 points and nearly five assists per game. Yanku was crucial in the win over North Dakota, dropping 24 points and 12 assists. He also notched 20 points and six assists in the team’s loss Saturday. He currently has 22 games where he has scored in double figures, just one behind team-leading Quinton Upshur in that category.

Huskisson Down: Northern Colorado’s Tim Huskisson presented some problems for the Lumberjacks Saturday. The senior brought down NAU with 18 points and seven boards, with 12 of those points coming in the second half. Huskisson came out to play Saturday; entering the contest, he averaged just under 11 points per game.

Tough Stats To Swallow: There are two stats that were damning for the Lumberjacks in their loss to UNCO: They were outscored 35-16 in bench scoring, and they gave up 17 points off turnovers.

The Lumberjacks wrap up their regular season with a weekend series in Flagstaff against Portland State and Sacramento State next weekend.

Next Reads