Sports Headlines
Lumberjacks advance to Big Sky Conference title game
09:14 AM MST on Wednesday, March 12, 2008
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) -- Three was the lucky number for Northern Arizona on Tuesday night.
The Lumberjacks' third win of the season over Weber State, a 75-70 victory Tuesday, put them in the Big Sky Conference tournament championship game for the third straight year.
Kyle Landry scored 21 points and grabbed seven rebounds to lead Northern Arizona (21-10). Nate Geiser and Nick Larson each added nine points for the Lumberjacks (21-10). Josh Wilson chipped in eight points.
Daviin Davis led Weber State (16-14) with 19 points. Dezmon Harris scored 15 points for the Wildcats and Arturas Valeika had 12 points and 11 rebounds.
NAU's Larson hit a 3-pointer with 2:56 left in the game that broke a 66-66 tie and gave the Lumberjacks a 69-66 lead. Two key inside buckets by Landry extended Northern Arizona's lead to 73-68 with 1:12 remaining to play.
Weber State failed to convert on its last three possessions and Wilson sealed the win for NAU with two free throws with eight seconds left to play.
Northern Arizona shot 58 percent from the floor and held Weber State to just 44 percent shooting on the night. NAU outshot the Wildcats from the 3-point line 11-7.
"The 3-point shot certainly helped us in this game," said NAU head coach Mike Adras. "We looked like NAU of old. I don't think we've been that proficient from 3-point range in a game this season. We picked a good time to shoot the ball well."
Landry was a force down low and connected on 9-of-13 from the floor and did not commit a personal foul on the night.
"Weber State beat us three times last year and stopped us from doing what we wanted to do, which was making the NCAA tournament," said Landry. "It feels great to repay the favor."
Leading 36-34 at halftime, Northern Arizona extended its lead with a 10-4 run to open the second half. Zach Filzen's 3-pointer with 15:38 left to play put the Lumberjacks up 46-38.
NAU's offense then went dry and did not score a field goal for the next five minutes. Meanwhile, a 10-3 Weber State run closed the gap to 49-48 with 12:14 remaining in the game.
The Wildcats eventually tied the game on a 3-pointer by Juan Pablo Silveira at the 11:02 mark and grabbed their first lead of the second half when two free throws by Steve Panos put them ahead 58-56.
The two teams exchanged leads over the next eight minutes before Larson's 3-pointer put the Lumberjacks ahead for good.
Northern Arizona fell behind 13-7 in the opening six minutes of the game before its offense finally kicked in. The Lumberjacks rattled off a 14-0 run over the next six minutes and led 21-13 when Jermaine Bishop hit a lay-in with 8:25 left before halftime.
Weber State immediately answered with a 9-0 run of its own and reclaimed the lead at 22-21 after Davis connected on an off-balance jumper with 5:58 left in the half.
The lead went back and forth in the final minutes of the first half before NAU's Matt Johnson drilled two 3-pointers in the last two minutes to give the Lumberjacks a 36-34 advantage at the break.
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