After leading by 10 at halftime, the Northwest Missouri State women’s basketball came up one possession short Friday evening at Lincoln, 66-64.

Following a Blue Tiger layup with 11 seconds left, Jasmin Howe’s three pointer from the left corner rattled out in the waning seconds.

The Bearcats fall to 2-9 overall and 0-5 in the MIAA, while Lincoln improves to 6-4 this season and 2-2 against conference foes.

Jaylah Jackson led the Bearcats with a career high 18 points.  Jackson hit eight of her 11 shots in the game, including all six attempts from inside the three-point line. The junior added one block and one steal on defense.

Tember Schechinger tied her season-best with 16 points, knocking down 7-of-11 shots. The senior grabbed five rebounds while dishing out two assists.  Junior Jasmin Howe chipped in 15 points, two assists and one steal.

The Bearcats scored 17 points off 21 Lincoln turnovers. The Bearcats gave away 14 turnovers in the contest.  Northwest hit 45.9 percent (28-of-61) of its shots, while the Blue Tigers knocked down 43.4 percent (23-of-53) from the field.

After the Blue Tigers tied the score at 16 with 5:43 to play in the second quarter on a pair of free throws, Northwest closed the half with a 17-7 run. The Bearcats scored 13 straight points to open the run, forcing four Lincoln misses and two turnovers. Jaylah Jackson drilled a trey off a pass from Macy Williams before Tanya Meyer laid in an easy bucket from under the basket. Maria Dentlinger then hit a short jumper on another assist from Williams, followed by a swipe and score from Jackson. Consecutive jumpers from Tember Schechinger and Jackson extended the Bearcat lead to 29-16 with 2:25 to play in the half.

The Bearcats will return to the floor Sunday in St. Charles, Mo. when they take on the Lindenwood Lady Lions. First tip is scheduled for 1 p.m.

— Northwest Athletics —