Junior guard Natasha Lacy took over the second half of Wednesday night’s game as the Lady Frogs beat the University of Wyoming Cowgirls .”(Lacy) is really good at taking control of the game. Its what she does,” said sophomore forward Lorie Butler-Rayford .
Despite not starting either half, Lacy scored 21 points, 19 of which came in the second half. Lacy scored 11 of the Frog’s last 13 points, and she was two points shy of tying her career-high.
Also leading the Frogs was Butler-Rayford who finished with 18 points and 11 boards, her sixth double-double of her career.
The Cowgirls lived and died by the three-pointer, as they shot 12 of 27 beyond the arc. The three-pointer accounted for 12 of their 20 total fields goals, and they shot 41 percent for the game.
Sophomore guard Jodi Bolerjack led the Cowgirls with 17 points on 5 of 10 shooting from the arc.
Head coach Jeff Mittie said Bolerjack was not the only threat to hit from beyond the arc.
“Its not one player that can shoot the three, its the whole lineup. We were able to stop them just enough,” Mittie said.
The Frogs were able to survive a great shooting night because they were able to take care of the basketball, Mittie said.
The Cowgirls committed 20 turnovers, while the Frogs only turned the ball over nine times. The Frogs were able to score 22 points off the Cowgirls inability to take care of the ball.
The Frogs only led by one point at the half, but made some adjustments to combat the Cowboys threat of shooting the three.
“We did a good job really getting after their guards, and we were more aggressive switching off the screens,” Mittie said
The Frogs also wanted to pound the ball inside during the second half, Mittie said. The Frogs outscored the Cowgirls 34 to 14 in the paint and received a total of 38 points from their three starting fowards. Wednesday’s 20-point paint differential was six higher than the one the Lady Frogs’ managed in their Jan. 7 loss earlier in the year.
With last night’s win, the Frogs improved to 6-3 in conference play and 12-8 overall.
The Lady Frogs’ next game is Feb. 12 at New Mexico. The Lobos (17-6, 7-3) just snapped a two-game losing streak Wednesday against Colorado State.
