Cardinal women swoop into NJCAA semifinals

SALINA, Kan. — In a tale of two halves for the fifth-seeded North Idaho College Cardinals, it was the second half that told the story Thursday night.

Sophomore Kama Griffitts went 9 of 18 from the floor for 20 points and grabbed seven rebounds as the Cardinals advanced to the NJCAA tournament semifinals after a 66-38 win over State Fair (Mo.) Community College at the Bicentennial Center.

“Kama got into a groove in the second half,” NIC coach Chris Carlson said. “She was able to get to the basket, step back and hit a couple 3s and just really got us going.”

NIC (30-3) shot 9 of 27 from the floor in the first half, but bounced back in the second half by going 14 of 27 and held State Fair (29-5) to 7 of 26 in the final 20 minutes.

“It took a while to bust it open tonight,” Carlson said. “We started the game well and then got a little anxious trying to build a big lead real fast. Our defense was solid again and kept us in a good position all night and we were able to get some flow going in the second half.”

State Fair pulled to within 15-13, but couldn’t get any closer as NIC went on a 9-0 run to stretch the lead midway through the first half.

“The girls put some pressure on themselves to get into the final four,” Carlson said. “They wanted to get here, and now that’s done. Pensacola is a good matchup for us. We’ve both got some quick guards and they’ve got a big inside that can step outside and shoot. They are really explosive.”

Tugce Canitez had 13 points and 13 rebounds for NIC (30-3), which faces top-seeded Pensacola tonight at 6 p.m. PST.

Pensacola advanced after beating Copiah-Lincoln 70-49 in another quarterfinal on Thursday

Kiki Edwards-Teasley had 14 rebounds and Amanda Carlton added 11 points off the bench for NIC, which outscored State Fair 40-19 in the second half to run away with the win.

“Both Tugce and Kiki were dominant inside tonight,” Carlson said. “They weren’t able to get a lot of second chances tonight and really kept us in the game.”

Four players had seven points apiece to lead State Fair in scoring.

STATE FAIR

Ebony Davis 3-9 1-2 7, Maci Wisdom 0-6 2-2 2, Dahlia Booker 2-7 0-0 7, Tyler Anderson 0-3 0-0 0, Ciara Leak 0-0 0-0 0, Alexas Brown 0-3 0-0 0, Jallisa Lewis 2-5 1-2 7, Mariah Duke 1-2 0-1 2, Hattie Harris 1-10 0-6 2, Arriana Walker 2-10 1-4 7, TyJae Chenevert 1-3 0-0 2, Aubree Carr 0-1 0-0 0, Anya Trass 1-2 0-0 2. Totals 15-63 4-7 38.

NORTH IDAHO

Kama Griffitts 9-18 0-0 20, Chantel Divilbiss 2-5 1-1 5, Camille Reynolds 0-5 0-0 0, Timena Shebala 0-1 0-0 0, Tugce Canitez 5-13 2-4 13, Amy Warbrick 2-6 1-2 5, Korina Baker 1-3 0-0 2, Kiki Edwards-Teasley 1-6 0-0 2, Julia Salmio 1-1 0-0 2, Amanda Carlton 4-6 1-2 11, Deanna Dotts 3-7 0-0 6. Totals 28-71 5-9 66.

Halftime — NIC 26-19. 3-point goals — SFCC 4-20 (Wisdom 0-3, Booker 1-1, Brown 0-1, Lewis 2-4, Duke 0-1, Harris 0-6, Walker 1-4). NIC 5-17 (Griffitts 2-8, Divilbiss 0-1, Reynolds 0-3, Shebala 0-1, Canitez 1-1, Warbrick 0-1, Carlton 2-2). Rebounds — SFCC 35 (Davis 7). NIC 63 (Edwards-Teasley 14). Assists — SFCC 5 (Booker, Walker 2). NIC 14 (Baker 4). Team fouls — SFCC 14, NIC 13. Fouled out — none.