(Peru, Neb.) – It was a tale of two halves.   One team won one half and the other won the second half.
 
The Peru State College (PSC) Bobcat women's basketball team led by as many as 15 in the first half and led at halftime 42-36.  The Columbia College Lady Cougars owned the second half as they outscored the 'Cats 44-27 to capture an 80-69 victory in the Al Wheeler Activity Center on Black Friday afternoon.
 
With the win, the 21^st-ranked Lady Cougars improved to 4-2 while Peru State fell to 3-4.
 
Game Action
 
Jasmine Tate (Fayetteville, N.C.) put PSC on the board first by hitting one of two free throws at the 19:35 mark in the opening seconds.
 
The teams traded buckets and it was tied at 5-5 before Tate again hit one of two free throws to give PSC the lead back at 6-5 with 16:17 left in the half.  A field goal by Aduago Osuala (Lakewood, Colo.) gave PSC its largest lead in the early part of the game before a Lady Cougar cut it to two at 8-6 after making one of two charity tries.
 
A hoop by Lauren Andrews (Omaha) made it 10-6 before Osuala, off a steal, hit another layup to make it PSC 12-6 with 14:19 remaining in the first stanza.  Columbia responded with a 4-0 run cutting the deficit to two at 12-10 before Jasmine Lockwood (Sunrise, Fla.) made it 14-10.
 
A hoop by Osuala and an old-fashioned three-point play by Andrews putting PSC up by its largest margin to that point in the game at 19-12 with 10:36 left in the half followed another Lady Cougar basket.
 Columbia cut it to four before PSC went on a 10-0 run fueled by Natasha Moss (Indianapolis), Teareal Davis (Omaha), Tate, and Courtney Ward (Bartlesville, Okla.), putting PSC on top 29-15 with 7:08 left.
 
Peru State later led 33-18; a 15-point margin with 6:15 left before the Cougars mounted a comeback and actually regained the lead at 36-35 with 84 seconds left in the half. 
 
However, the 'Cats went on a 7-0 run to finish the half with a 42-36 lead.
 
The Lady Cougars opened the second half with a bucket to cut it to four, but PSC kept it at a six-point lead at 46-40 before things started to unravel for the 'Cats.
 
A 10-4 run by Columbia tied it at 50-50 with 12:40 left in the game.  The Lady Cougars made a free throw to lead 51-50 before Andrews responded with a bucket to give PSC its final lead in the game at 52-51 with 11:31 left in the game.
 
A 29-17 run by the Lady Cougars salted away the game as Columbia won 80-69.
 
Game Statistics
 
Columbia outshot the 'Cats 42.1% to 39.4% in the game.  Both teams struggled from behind the arc as the Lady Cougars only made one of 15 three-point tries for 0.067% while the 'Cats hit two of 13 for 15.4%.  Columbia was better at the charity stripe making 31 of 44 tries for 70.5% while PSC was 15 of 27 for 55.6%. 
 
The Lady Cougars had a slight rebounding edge grabbing 41 rebounds to PSC's 37.  Columbia committed 20 miscues compared to the Bobcats' 23 turnovers.
 
Individual Statistics
 
Ward led all scorers and rebounds with 20 points and 14 rebounds while adding two steals.  Ayana Smith (Colorado Springs) was the only other Bobcat in double figures finishing the game with ten.
 Osuala finished with nine points and continued to be a terror on defense as she grabbed seven steals.

COLUMBIA BOX SCORE
 
KNCY Player of the Game Comments
 
Ward, for her double double, was named the KNCY Player of the Game.  Ward was not happy with the loss and said, “This definitely was not the outcome we wanted.  One of our biggest issues is staying poised, and we did not do that in the second half.  We got away from what was working and we just started jacking up shots.”
 
Coach Ivy Comments
 
Bobcat head coach Maurtice Ivy noted it was a real tough loss, but it was still early in the season.  Ivy said, “I have a young team which is going to compete.  We will figure out the things that are going wrong and then we will be okay.”
 
Ivy added, “We forgot what got us the 15-point lead, which was that we had attacked the basket and we did not do that in the second half.  We have get our individuals to do some things better, then we will play better collectively as a team.”
 
In conclusion, Ivy noted, “The conference season is right around the corner and we will play basketball at a high level.  We are gelling, but we still need to get better.”
 
Upcoming Games
 
Peru State begins its Heart of America Athletic Conference (HAAC) action next week when the MidAmerica Nazarene University Pioneers visit on Thursday, Nov. 29.  Game time is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. and will be followed by the men's game at approximately 7:30 p.m.
 
The Bobcats will have another HAAC matchup on Saturday, Dec. 1, when they travel to Central Methodist University in Fayette, Mo., to take on the Eagles at 2 p.m.
 
A non-conference game with visiting Rogers State University (Okla.) will be held on Monday, Dec. 3, at 5:30 p.m. 
 
PSC will return to HAAC play the following Saturday, Dec. 8, hosting Culver-Stockton College, with the game beginning at 2 p.m.