By Con Marshall BOX SCORE
Junior forward Kylie Krise sank seven of eight 3-point shots and made both of her free throws for 23 points to lead the Chadron State College women’s basketball team to a 78-63 win over Metro State in a Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference game in Denver on Saturday afternoon.
The win was just Chadron State’s fourth in the last 27 games with Metro and was the first in Denver since the 2000-01 season
Krise’s first 3-pointer broke a 22-22 deadlock and came with four minutes left in the second quarter to put the Eagles ahead for keeps. She also hit another trey on her team’s next trip down the court to help CSC lead 32-29 at halftime.
The third period was when Krise and her teammates really warmed. The 5-10 Briggsdale, Colo., native made all five of her shots from behind the arc and also both of her free throws in the third stanza. That helped the Eagles outscore the Roadrunners 32-15 to take a 64-44 lead into the fourth quarter.
Altogether, the Eagles were 13 of 17 from the field in the third frame. They cooled down in the fourth, making just four of 11 field goal attempts, but hit six of eight free throws to win the game by 15 points.
CSC’s first-year head coach Travis Brewster was understandably happy with the victory. He said the players “have kept plugging away” and came away with a big victory. He said that while he has challenged them to do more, he also has tried to keep the game as simple as possible.
Overall, Chadron State, now 4-8 for the season and 2-5 in the RMAC, shot 31 of 53 from the field for 58.5%, including 10 of 20 from long range. Krise had been 11 of 35 on 3-pointers through CSC’s first 10 games this season.
Forward Shay Powers was six of nine from the field while scoring 13 points and grabbing a game-high eight rebounds for Chadron State. Megan Counts added 10 points and Awoti Akoi eight for the visitors.
The Eagles turned the ball over 24 times, but were credited with 23 assists and won the rebounding battle 36-23.
Brooklynn Jones paced Metro’s scoring with 15 points, followed by Brianna Sealy with 13 and Mikylah Espinoza with 10. The Roadrunners, now 2-9 overall and 1-5 in the season, were 25 of 58 from the field for 43%, including five of 17 on 3-pointers. They had 16 turnovers.
The Eagles will be home this coming weekend to meet Colorado Mesa and Westminster.