The NKU Norse women’s basketball team lost to Oakland 61-47 on Friday night at BB&T Arena after trailing by only two points with four minutes to play. The loss puts the Norse at 7-14 on the season and 3-6 in Horizon League play.

“For three quarters, I thought we played really good defense,” head coach Camryn Whitaker said. “Actually, for three quarters, five minutes, and eleven seconds we did a really good job. We have to continue to improve and we have to find a way to be consistent.”

NKU was led by senior Rebecca Lyttle, who recorded a double-double with 12 points and 13 rebounds, eight of which came on the offensive end of the floor.

“The offensive rebounds really allowed me to go back up and get fouled and make some free throws.” Lyttle said.

Kasey Uetrecht and Mikayla Terry each added 11 points for the Norse.

NKU trailed Oakland by one point at halftime, despite shooting only 26 percent from the field compared to Oakland’s 52 percent. The Norse had 20 rebounds at halftime, with 13 of them coming on the offensive glass.

“Our offensive rebounding was working, but we weren’t scoring on them. We fought really hard but we just didn’t finish.” Whitaker said.

Kelley Wiegman buried a three pointer right before time expired in the third quarter to tie the game at 36. NKU improved their shooting percentage from the previous two quarters and continued to dominate the offensive glass.  

Despite that, it was Oakland who took control in the fourth quarter with four minutes to go. Leading by two, the Golden Grizzlies exploded, shooting 43 percent including three from beyond the arc, expanding their lead to 14 points, and winning by the same margin.

“We know what we did wrong. It was the last four minutes, and that’s all mental,” Uetrecht said. “We fix the mental aspect of it and we win that game.”

NKU shot just 25 percent in the fourth, and only shot 27 percent for the game.

“We were down two points, and I just don’t think we had any gas left in the tank,” Whitaker said. “I have to find ways as a coach to get them some breaks.”

The Norse now shift their focus to Detroit Mercy, whom they lost to earlier this season. Detroit travels to BB&T Arena on Sunday for a 1 p.m. tip-off. The game will be available to watch on ESPN3.