Lady Jags Split A Pair Of Games Over The Weekend
The Lady Jags suffered their first loss of the season on Friday when they played Cal State Northridge. Cold shooting lead to the Jags first loss in a 47-40 decision in the opening round of the Radisson Hotel Chatsworth Thanksgiving Basketball Classic at the Matadome.
The lady Jags shot a season-low 22.1 percent from the field in the game. “It really didn’t matter where the shots were coming from tonight, we just couldn’t score,” Jaguar head coach Rick Pietri said. “You have to give part of the credit to that to Cal State Northridge’s defense. In the second half, we were able to make some adjustments. We attacked them and got some open looks on the perimeter and some plays close to the goal. But we just couldn’t make plays. We were able to cut it to five late in the second half after being down by 12 or 13, and we just couldn’t make that one extra play offensively and (Cal State Northridge) responded. They’re a good team and were picked to win their league for a reason. They’re expected to be in the NCAA tournament. When they had to make a play, their players stepped up and finished. When we had to close the gap more, we just couldn’t finish.”
That dropped the Jaguars record to 4-1 on the season and took on Detroit on Saturday in the consolation game where they bounced back with a 59-56 win.
That win improved the the Jaguars record to 5-1 on the season before the Jaguars open up Sun Belt Conference play at Florida Atlantic on Wednesday.
Mary Nixon’s return to the lineup had an immediate impact for the Jags. She led the way with 19 points on 5-of-11 shooting and was also 6-of-8 at the foul line.
“Mary Nixon clearly is a difference maker for us,” Coach Pietri said. “She sat out the last two games for us and today was available to play and was excellent. She not only does things individually, but her presence has a positive effect on the rest of our group. Mansa El also played very well today and I think she was able to do that because of the presence of Mary on the court. When we are fully stocked, I feel really good about where we are as a team as we move forward.”
The Jags tip-off against Florida Atlantic at 6:05pm Central time.