#11 Alaska Anchorage 86, Parkside 57
It was a tough night for the Rangers and their first game in Alaska, as they fell down early to #11 Alaska Anchorage and could never mount a comeback. Alaska Anchorage is 5-0 on the year and is coming off a sweet 16 NCAA tournament appearance. The loss brings Parkside under the .500 mark at 2-3.
 
FIRST HALF
Parkside started the game how they wanted to, and grabbed a quick 9-7 lead after a three-pointer from sophomore Courtney Schoenbeck. Unfortunately for the Rangers, that was the last lead they would hold as the Seawolves closed the quarter on a 19-8 run. For most of the second quarter, the two teams traded baskets, until some hot shooting helped Alaska Anchorage build a 22-point lead right before the half. Parkside suffered from some cold shooting in the first half as they shot 10-for-29 from the field and 4-for-14 beyond the arc. The Seawolves, as mentioned earlier, didn't have the same cold shooting issues, as they shot 63-percent from the field and 61.5-percent from three in the half.
 
SECOND HALF
The Rangers started the second half well and cut the lead to 17 on a pair of free throws from junior Alisha Murphy with 5:27 left in the third quarter. From there, Parkside was unsuccessful in cutting the lead any further, as Anchorage held a lead near 20 throughout the half until halfway through the fourth quarter.  With 6:03 left in the game, the Seawolves' Safiyyah Yasin made a layup that started a 13-3 run to end the game.
 
HEAR FROM COACH CONELY
"Tough loss against a really good Alaska Anchorage team, they're nationally ranked for a reason," said head coach Jen Conely. "I thought we did a decent job handling the pressure they put on us, but we have to do a better job of getting in an offensive flow despite that pressure. They did a good job applying the pressure we just didn't do a good enough job of finding the gaps and creating easier scores."


"Defensively I thought we were solid for 95-percent of the possessions, and then bailed them out with free throws," Conely continued. "We have to do a better job of executing our defensive game plan. We obviously have some things to work on, but it's a quick turnaround for tomorrow so we don't have much time to dwell on it."
 
STATWORTHY
Parkside benefitted from some balanced scoring as three were in double-digits. Murphy led the team with 12 points, while Senior Taylor Stephen added 11 points with four rebounds and four assists. Sophomore Alyssa Nelson also chipped in 10 points to go with 8 rebounds.
The Rangers had a tough night shooting, going just 30.4-percent from the field and 28.6-percent from three. Alaska Anchorage meanwhile shot 49.1-percent from the field and 39.1-percent from three. The host also held the advantage in rebounding on the night, 46-26.
 
WHAT'S NEXT
The green & white has a quick turnaround and will be back in action at the Alaska Airlines Center on Saturday, Nov. 23 at 4 p.m. against Alaska Fairbanks. Following, the Rangers will finally get their home opener as they take on Minnesota Mankato on Saturday, Nov. 30 at 1 p.m.