ALVA, Okla. – The No. 24 Northwestern Oklahoma State women's basketball team fell to No. 15 Harding, 58-51, on Thursday night.

The Lady Rangers got off to a strong start, as Camille Pritchard and Summya Adigun got the scoring started with layups inside the paint to quickly put Northwestern up 4-0 early in the contest. Harding answered to tie the game at 5-5 halfway through the first quarter, and the rest of the quarter was a defensive battle with Kira Bass beating the buzzer to tie the game at 11-11 going into the second quarter.

Northwestern and Harding continued to trade blows throughout the first half, with the Lady Bisons going on a 4-0 spurt before Bass attacked inside for four straight points to keep the game even at 15-15 with 7:19 remaining in the first half. Harding went on the first major run of the game on a 10-2 stretch to push the lead to eight late in the half, but Adigun and Pritchard knocked down timely shots to trail 25-22 at halftime.

In the third quarter, the Lady Ranger defense stifled Harding, as they only allowed three points in the first five minutes of the quarter. The Lady Rangers continued to work inside the paint and tied the game at 30-30 behind a bucket from Conley Cayot. Northwestern closed out the quarter on a 6-2 stretch, as Bass and Jaida Shipp led the charge to give the Lady Rangers the lead, 36-32.

Pritchard immediately extended the Northwestern lead to six to start the fourth quarter, but Harding knocked down three three-pointers over a four-minute span to tie the game at 43-43 with 5:38 remaining in the game. Kennedy Hight buried a three to retake to lead for the Lady Rangers, but Harding responded with a 12-2 run to help put the game away as the Lady Rangers fell to the Lady Bisons, 58-51.

Bass led the Lady Rangers in scoring and rebounds with 18 points and 12 boards for her eighth double-double of the season, while Hight led in assists with five.

The Lady Rangers will be back in action on Jan. 31st, when they take on Arkansas Tech University on Hall of Fame Day inside Percefull Fieldhouse at 1 p.m.

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