---

By David Boyce

ST. CHARLES, Mo. - All game, Northwest Missouri State's women's basketball team was losing the battle on the offensive glass against Lindenwood. But for a brief second before the start of the fourth quarter, it appeared the Bearcats were going to overcome it.
 
Northwest stared at a 12-point deficit with less than 3 minutes remaining in the third quarter. Thanks to two NBA-range three-pointers by junior Tanya Meyer in the final 40 seconds, the Bearcats trailed by two points.
 
Meyer's last bomb came right at the third-quarter buzzer. Northwest had all the momentum, but couldn't sustain it. Lindenwood went on an 18-2 run to start the fourth quarter and that carried the Lions to an 81-70 win Saturday afternoon at Hyland Arena.
 
"What is disappointing is you don't have to be an athlete to box out," Northwest coach Buck Scheel said. "You don't have to be an athlete to play tough. You have to want to do it, and we didn't want to do it and it really hurt us."
 
It definitely looked bleak for the Bearcats when they fell behind 56-44 late in the third quarter. Northwest, though, wasted little time erasing its first double-digit deficit of the game. Consecutive baskets by Meyer and Jasmin Howe followed by two free throws by Meyer closed the gap to 56-50.
 
Lindenwood stopped the 6-0 run with a basket and that led to two straight three-pointers by Meyer to close the third quarter.
 
The Bearcats even had the ball with an opportunity to tie at the start of the fourth quarter. Northwest had a poor possession. Lindenwood took advantage with a basket and then a free throw followed by another field goal to increase its lead to 63-56.
 
"It is tough for us to play with any consistency," Scheel said. "I thought at the beginning of the fourth quarter we would be able to continue that run and get some things going."
 
Howe broke the Lions' run with a basket, but the Bearcats were unable to string together a couple of field goals in a row.
 
Lindenwood put together its best offensive stretch of the game. The Lions didn't need offensive rebounds because they were making layups. Lindenwood scored the next 13 points and built a 76-58 lead.
 
"When you go out there, back off and relax, the other team makes you pay and that is exactly what Lindenwood did," Scheel said.
 
In the end, the Bearcats simply couldn't overcome 19-7 advantage Lindenwood had on the offensive glass.
 
Meyer had a solid game, scoring 16 points and pulling down 14 rebounds. Howe finished with a team-high 19 points and sophomore Macy Williams was 5-for-6 from the field and finished with 11 points.
 
In the first half, Northwest used a combination of three-pointers by Howe and Mallory McAndrews and drives by Williams to within striking distance of Lindenwood. Despite a seven-point deficit in the second quarter that was on the verge of growing, Northwest went into halftime trailing 38-35.
 
Northwest started quickly. Howe and McAndrews each hit a three-pointer in the opening minutes to give the Bearcats an early 8-4 lead.
 
Lindenwood scored the next six points for a 10-8 lead. Northwest took its final lead in the first half at 11-10 on a free throw by Arbrie Benson.
 
The Lions ability to gather offensive rebounds allowed them to take a 19-17 lead into the second quarter. Rebounding was a key to Lindenwood building a 27-20 lead in the second quarter.
 
A three-pointer by Howe got Northwest back on track, and Williams's drives to the basket provided a late spark. Her first one pulled Northwest to within four at 32-28.
 
Williams finished the quarter strong. One of her drives made it 34-32. After the Lions scored, Williams made her final drive of the half and it resulted in a layup and a foul. Williams made the free throwing, helping Northwest close to one a 36-35.
 
The only aspect that kept Northwest from going into halftime ahead was offensive rebounding. Lindenwood had 11 offensive boards compared to five for Northwest.