Cold Shooting Results In 27 Point Loss

Coming off of a big road win, the Lady Vikes hoped to build momentum as they continue to navigate through their conference schedule. Next on the docket was the Walla Walla Warriors as BBCC hosted WWCC at the Devries Activity Center on Saturday January 27th. 

As highlighted by Head Coach Preston Wilks, the overall success of the Lady Vikes starts with the defense. Wilks reiterated this game plan prior to taking on the Warriors seeking their second straight win.

"Today our focus and number one goal was to duplicate the defensive execution from our recent road win at Yakima. And we did start strong defensively, holding them to just 13 points and 35% FG shooting in that 1^st quarter."

With the defense taking care of business, the offense needed to execute to take advantage of the quality defense they were exhibiting. Unfortunately, the offense struggled early neutralizing the elite defensive showing. 

"We couldn't buy a bucket in the first quarter and our cold shooting carried over to the next quarter, putting us in a big hole at the half. Walla Walla plays tough defense, one of the best, strong defensive teams in the NWAC and we struggled to get buckets that we are used to getting", said Wilks.

With back to back slow offensive quarters, the Lady Vikes went into the break trailing 32-18. Knowing the offense would have to wake up to give any hope of a comeback, the Lady Vikes tried to push the envelop to mount a comeback. Unfortunately, the attempt to speed up the offense resulted in turnovers allowing Walla Walla to stretch their lead to 31 going into the final 10 minutes.

"The third quarter was tough for us as we turned the ball over more in that quarter than in any of the other quarters. Quite a few of our TOs went the other way for easy scores on their end. And we were severely out-rebounded that quarter as well, 11-2. We know those two areas can be key factors in our success, but we just didn't execute very well when we needed to", stated Head Coach Preston Wilks.

With only ten minutes to go and a 31 point deficit on their hands, the Lady Vikes needed to find a way to take a step in the right direction regardless of the result of the game. 

"To start the 4^th quarter, we really wanted to go out and just focus on our effort and not the score, since we were down by 31 points. We wanted to win the 4^th quarter so that we could build some positive traction moving into our matchup against BMCC on Monday. We played strong in the 4th. We battled, we competed. And we ended the game on a high note, winning the final quarter" said Wilks. 

The Lady Vikes ultimately wont he fourth quarter cutting the deficit to 27 with a final score of 69-42. Although a tough loss after a quality win Wilks had this to say about the game.

"In the locker room afterwards, initially the ladies were a bit down, but we reminded them again, that we will always be fine, if we never give up the fight and we keep the faith. I shared with the team that the biggest takeaway from this game is that we didn't give up and that we fought till the end and the next game will be better if we want it to be. The ladies were good by the time we had our final cheer and we're looking forward to our matchup on Monday and playing in front of our home crowd again."

A quick turnaround for the Lady Vikes as they make up an earlier cancellation with Blue Mountain Community College on Monday January 29th at the Devries Activity Center at 5:00pm. 

As always, keep up with the Lady Vikings on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, as well as through the NWACSports Network's livestream video platform, where available.