Barrios’ career day not enough in 69-61 setback to Jacksonville

THIBODAUX, La. — Junior Cassidy Barrios sparked a fourth-quarter rally, finishing with a career-high 33 points and had 10 rebounds for her third straight double-double, but the Nicholls State University women’s basketball team came up short Saturday against Jacksonville University, falling 69-61 in Stopher Gym.

Nicholls trailed Jacksonville (2-2) by as much as 23 in the third quarter before chipping away at the deficit and cutting it to single digits in the fourth. JU held a 59-46 advantage with six minutes remaining before the Colonels used a 7-0 spurt over the next minute to make it a six-point game. Barrios scored five of her 29 second-half points in the run, capped on a 3-pointer, but the Dolphins countered with a 6-0 run and went on for the victory.

A big component of the comeback was the Colonel defense picking up the pressure in the second half, leading to 11 steals on 14 turnovers. Overall, Nicholls finished with 20 steals and had outstanding defensive outings from Tia Charles (7 steals) and Barrios (6).

Barrios’ third double-double in as many games came on 12 of 19 from the field and 8 of 10 at the charity stripe. Her final stat line for the day included 33 points, 10 rebounds, six steals, three assists and two blocks.

The rest of the team struggled from the field, making only 9 of 41. Charles was the second-leading scorer with nine points, but had an off-day shooting as she made 3 of 20. Airi Hamilton added eight points on 3 of 7.

The cold shooting resulted in an early deficit with Jacksonville racing out to a 12-point lead after the first quarter. Nicholls (1-2) hit just 27 percent from the field for the half and went into the locker room trailing 37-22. The Dolphins received a combined 20 points from Shakayla Nevitt and Brandi Buie as they connected on nearly half of their shots as a team. Nevitt finished with a team-high 20 points.

In the second half, JU grabbed a 49-26 advantage on a bucket from Alexis Burns before Barrios took over. The Raceland native scored nine of the Colonels’ 11 points to close out the third, and Nicholls cut the lead down to 10 on three different occasions – twice on baskets by Barrios – before finally breaking through with the late run. But a missed shot and a turnover helped Jacksonville answer the run as Nicholls fell to 1-1 at home.

UP NEXT

The Colonels will head to Baton Rouge Tuesday, Nov. 21 for a matchup against LSU at 7 p.m. The game is set to stream live on SECN+.