Riverhawks wipe boards with Mt. Hood
UCC out-rebounds MHCC by 17, on route to 17 point victory
The women’s basketball team (15-5, 5-1 NWAACC South) maintained their first place standing tied atop the conference by defeating the Mt. Hood Saints (2-17, 0-6 NWAACC South) on the back of a dominating performance on the boards, and an impressive effort from their bench. UCC put on a rebounding clinic against Mt. Hood, finishing with a 54-37 advantage, 23 of which came from the offensive end. Poor shooting early on by the Riverhawks led to more put back opportunities, but a 32 point effort from the UCC bench would prove too much for a depleted Mt. Hood squad.
Coach Stricklin, who recently notched his 700 career coaching victory, mentioned that in order to beat Mt. Hood, “We need to go out there and play our game, and play like we are capable of playing. If we do that, we will be OK.”
After taking a 35-29 advantage into halftime, the Riverhawks came into the second half and jumped all over the Saints. UCC sprinted ahead of MHCC with a 20-2 run, that stretched their lead to 56-33. Umpqua’s tenacious defense and effort on the glass would not allow Mt. Hood an opportunity back into the game. “Rebounding is the most important aspect of our game. Coach Stricklin’s teams have always been atop the NWAACC in rebounding,” Asia Smith, a recent NWAACC player of the week, commented.
The emphasis is evident in the fact the Riverhawks have two of the NWAACC’s top five rebounders, Ashli Payne and Asia Smith. Going into Saturday nights play, Payne was fourth at 10.63 per game, and Smith was fifth at 10.13. Both played huge roles against Mt. Hood. Payne had a team high 15 points to go along with five steals, while Smith contributed seven points and a team leading 10 boards. Leilani Morris added a solid performance with 10 points and six rebounds, while Kyndal Charleston chipped in 11 points. The Riverhawk’s next home game will be versus conference co-leader Lane Community College on Feb 5, at 4:30 p.m.