Women roar back to subdue Nanooks

FAIRBANKS – Hanna Johansson scored 23 points and Nikki Aden added 18 on Saturday to lift the 15th-ranked Alaska Anchorage women's basketball team to a 73-46 victory over Alaska Fairbanks at the Patty Center.

The Seawolves (6-2, 1-0 GNAC) also got six points and a game-high eight rebounds from junior forward Kaylie Robison as they won the Great Northwest Athletic Conference opener for both teams.

The Nanooks (0-6, 0-1) were led by 12 points and six rebounds from Autumn Greene, but the home team was bitten by 39 turnovers and held to 30 percent shooting.

UAA, which has now won seven straight in the series, actually trailed 16-9 after 11 minutes before taking control. Johansson started the comeback with four straight free throws and former Nanook Sarah Herrin put the Seawolves on top 20-19 with a basket at the 5:54 mark of the first half.

Leading just 26-24, forward Tijera Mathews scored two of her nine points on a layup and Robison added a pair of buckets to close the half. The Seawolves made it a 16-0 overall run by scoring the first 10 points of the second half, and eventually built their lead as high as 71-36 with 4:36 to play.

Johansson, a 6-2 junior from Gothenburg, Sweden, came two points shy of matching her career-high, shooting 8 of 13 from the field and 7 of 9 at the charity stripe. She also had six rebounds, doing all of her damage in just 18 minutes because of foul trouble.

Meanwhile, Aden equaled her season-high with 18 points, making 6 of 10 from the field and all five of her free throws. The senior from Portland, Ore., also swiped a career-high seven steals to help UAA post a gargantuan advantage of 46-3 in points off turnovers.

The Seawolves continue a busy December when they host the second annual AT&T Hoops Classic, Dec. 10-11 at the Wells Fargo Sports Complex. UAA opens Friday night against Minot State at 7 p.m.

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Players Mentioned

#25 Nikki Aden: G/F; 5' 8"; Freshman

#RS Sarah Herrin: G; 5' 8"; Junior

#50 Hanna Johansson: F; 6' 2"; Freshman

#3 Tijera Mathews: G/F; 5' 10"; Junior

#24 Kaylie Robison: F; 6' 0"; Junior

Players Mentioned

#25 Nikki Aden
: 5' 8"; Freshman
: G/F

#RS Sarah Herrin
: 5' 8"; Junior
: G

#50 Hanna Johansson
: 6' 2"; Freshman
: F

#3 Tijera Mathews
: 5' 10"; Junior
: G/F

#24 Kaylie Robison
: 6' 0"; Junior
: F