The Northwest Missouri State women’s basketball team locked down defensively on Nebraska-Kearney sealing a 71-52 victory Wednesday night.

The Bearcats jumped back above the .500 mark to 13-12 on the season and 7-10 in league play. UNK fell to 6-18 overall and 3-14, as Northwest sweeps the season series with the Lopers.

Maggie Marnin tied a season-high 19 points and added 10 rebounds for her third double-double of the season to pace the Bearcats. Marnin also added four blocks as the Bearcat defense stymied the Lopers most of the night.

Northwest enjoyed a 38-30 halftime lead and used an 8-2 run to build a 46-32 lead in the first five minutes of the second half.

Monique Stevens hit a three-pointer from the wing, but Nicole Arp matched her from downtown to keep the Bearcat lead under 10 with 9:40 left to play. However, the Bearcats would continue to work the favorable post matchups with Marnin scoring the next six points of the game helping Northwest push its lead back to 15 at 57-42.

The Bearcats shot 57 percent from the field and outscored UNK 48-30 in the paint. Northwest continued to switch defenses in the second half keeping the Lopers guessing which was evident by their 37 percent shooting on the night.

After snapping a five-game losing streak the Bearcats have now won their last two games heading into Saturday’s regular season finale against Truman State. The Bulldogs currently sit fourth in the league standings while Northwest will likely be on the road in their MIAA Tournament first round game.

Northwest will also honor two seniors as tip off from Bearcat Arena is set for 3:30 p.m.

— NWMSU Sports Information —