Aschoff Triple Double Helps Lopers Take Round One with Griffs

Kearney, Neb. – Redshirt senior guard Jillian Aschoff recorded a double double and freshman Myleigh Weers had her sixth 20-point game of the season as the Lopers held off Missouri Western, 84-76, Thursday evening at the Health & Sports Center.

UNK (8-6, 1-2) and Mo West (4-8, 0-3) meet again Jan. 17 in St. Joseph.

In a game that lasted two hours as it featured 50 fouls, 49 free throw attempts and several video reviews, the Lopers came out on top thanks to a mid-game surge. A 31-6 run encompassing the last six minutes of the second quarter and the first three minutes of the second half gave UNK a seemingly comfortable 62-42 cushion. To erase a five-point hole and open its biggest lead of the game, the Lopers made 12 of 18 shots including four treys.

However, a bigger Griffs squad got back into it by getting into the paint and to the free throw line. They finished plus 18 on the glass, sunk 21 of 33 free throws and saw four reach double figures.

“It’s been a season of adversity for us. What I credit our team with is the ability to keep fighting. They (Mo West) jumped back, cut it and there’s plenty of people that fold, give in, tuck your tail between your legs and feel bad for yourself,” said UNK head coach Drew Johnson. “We just kept fighting and got more aggressive downhill in the fourth quarter.”

A layup by Mia Morell made it just a two-point game, 67-65, at the start of the fourth, but UNK was up by double digits, 77-67, with 5:45 remaining. The Griffs didn’t go quietly, never leading but forcing the Lopers to make shots and get stops down the stretch. Junior forward Jordan Sears (McPherson, Kan.) had eight of her 19 points in the fourth with senior reserve point guard Saniya Simmons (Olathe, Kan.) hitting a driving layup to make it 80-76 with just 1:17 left. Aschoff (Lincoln Pius) went 4 for 4 at the line to finally salt things away.

“We needed that (scoring) stretch from Jordan. She’s a capable scorer and she’s really embraced this role of playmaker for us. She’s trying to find the next pass and when she attacks, if she can get to the hip, she’s going to go score. She also hit a few threes tonight,” said Johnson. “We’re going to continue to be smaller and that’s not going to change anytime soon. We have to find ways to scrap and box out. You can’t give up that many offensive rebounds and fouls like we did in this one.

Coming off the program’s second-ever triple double (15/12/13) Dec. 16 vs. Chadron State, Aschoff went for 22 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists tonight. Having a career-high 31 points in her last game (Dec. 17), she went 10 of 11 at the line and had six buckets. Next, Weers (Diller) had 19 of her team-high 23 in the first half with Sears and her having three triples apiece. Finally, Simmons had nine points and was one of five Lopers whistled for four fouls.

Junior forwards Sydney Lewis (14 points, 13 rebounds) and Nakiya Harris (20 points, nine rebounds) and Brazilian junior point guard Ana Dias Oliveira (16 points, eight rebounds and seven assists) paced a Griffs team with a first-year head coach and a new roster.

UNK hosts Northwest Missouri State on Saturday. The Bearcats (9-4, 2-1) lost tonight at nationally-ranked Fort Hays State, 84-71.