Husker women’s basketball team tops Cal State-Bakersfield 70-57

It was a strange first half between Nebraska and Cal State-Bakersfield inside the Bob Devaney Sports Center on Tuesday night.

There was the referee grooving during pregame introductions and the PA announcer botching the visiting team’s name, but the Cornhuskers put aside the distractions to win 70-57.

Coach Connie Yori said the game frustrated her, but she thought her team found a way to win.

“I’d rather win by fifty, but it’s nice to be in a close game too, in that it helps you to feel more confident because there’s going to be those types of games down the road,” she said.

Junior Yvonne Turner and senior Tay Hester took control of the game early on.

Turner came up with a steal but could not convert it into points down on the other end. She came right back on the next possession and nailed a three-pointer to tie the game at 11 ten minutes into the game.

Hester arguably played her best half of basketball this year, leading NU and tying her career-high of 14 points by halftime. Heading into the locker rooms, NU held a slim six-point lead.

Junior Nicole Neals said Hester kept the Huskers in the game. Yori agreed.

“I thought she [Hester] was the high-energy player on our team,” Yori said. “You don’t always know who you’re going to get that from, and we got that from her tonight.”

Hester said Nebraska needed to win this game coming off of a loss. She said NU came out flat but tried to stay aggressive. Hester said she quickly figured out the Roadrunners’ game plan. CSUB was leaving her open, and that’s when Hester took over.

“If you don’t have anyone guarding you, I think it’s pretty easy to score,” said Hester, who finished with a career-high 17 points.

NU had a sluggish start to the second half, going 1-for-7 from the floor. The Huskers would settle down and begin to add to their lead.

Sophomore Catheryn Redmon made a big impact in the second half of her second-career start but wasn’t a big factor early on.

It seemed the Huskers and Redmon didn’t find their rhythm until midway through the second half. Redmon scored all seven of Nebraska’s final points, knocking down five free throws and making a quick jumper with 17 ticks left. The basket came after her free throw attempt bounced right back to her.

“After it left my hand, I thought I probably should have kicked it out or hold it,” Redmon said. “It came off the rim and landed right in my hand and I just went right back up with it.”

Redmon ended up with a double-double, scoring 13 and collecting 15 off the glass. She also blocked three shots in her career-high 28 minutes played.

Cal State-Bakersfield used its dribble penetration to stay afloat, but the Roadrunners committed 14 turnovers in the first period alone. There were several occasions where a CSUB player was called for traveling, making it difficult to establish an offensive rhythm.

CSUB’s leading scorer, Christin Kepenekian, had a double-double with 19 points and 10 rebounds. She went 4-for-6 from 3-point range, including one she launched from deep beyond the line as the shot clock expired.

Sophomore Nicole Leon and junior Kelley Tarver each had 11 points for the Roadrunners.

Nebraska finished the game shooting 37.9 percent from the field. Once again, the Huskers struggled from beyond the arc. They managed to hit five three-point shots on 17 attempts.

Redmon said Nebraska did not play its best ball against the Roadrunners but were resilient and found a way to win.

“Even if it’s ugly we just have to keep fighting through, keep playing,” she said.

jeffstraub@dailynebraskan.com

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