Pullman, Wash. ? The Nebraska women’s basketball team trailed by seven points early in the second half, but came back for a 64-56 win over Washington State at Friel Court on Thursday night.
Heather Kephart led the Huskers with 15 points on five three-pointers, including four consecutive three-pointers in the second-half, to turn a four-point NU deficit into a five-point lead at 49-44 with less than eight minutes remaining. Kephart, a 5-8 freshman from Canute, Okla., hit 5-of-7 three-pointers on the night to improve her season total to 15 three-pointers, which ties for fifth on the Husker single-season three-point chart.
Kephart’s hot second-half shooting helped Nebraska improve to 4-1 on the season, while Washington State slipped to 3-2 with its first home loss of the year.
Margaret Richards added 13 points, six rebounds and five assists despite battling illness, while Alexa Johnson added 11 points and four boards in the victory.
Nebraska jumped out to a 10-5 lead in the first six minutes of the game, but Washington State answered the rest of the half to take a 30-28 lead into the locker room.
Washington State continued to build momentum out of the locker room, racing to its largest lead of the game at 39-32 with just over 16 minutes to play. Richards and Johnson combined for five points to cut the lead to four points at 41-37 before Kephart got the hot hand by scoring 12 straight points.
The NU lead grew to 51-44 after a pair of Richards free throws, but the Cougars responded with eight straight points, including a pair of three-pointers by Charmaine Jones to take a 52-51 lead with just over four minutes left in the game.
But the Huskers made the plays down the stretch, as Keasha Cannon-Johnson hit a crucial three-pointer for Nebraska to regain the lead at 54-52. After a Richards basket, Cannon-Johnson scored again to give NU control at 58-52. Jina Johansen hit four free throws down the stretch and Johnson added a pair with nine seconds left to seal the victory.
Jessica Perry led Washington State with 14 points, including a trio of three-pointers. The Cougars hit 8-of-17 three-pointers on the night after hitting just nine total three-pointers through their first four games this season.
The Huskers return home to take on the Texas-Arlington Lady Mavs at the Devaney Center on Saturday, Dec. 6, at 7:05 p.m. Members of the U.S. Marines ROTC program will be at the entrances of the Devaney Center on Saturday collecting unwrapped Christmas gifts as part of the Toys for Tots Program.