Behind 14 points from both forward Emily Christensen and guard Tika Koshiyama-Diaz and a season-low in points allowed, the Sacramento State women’s basketball team earned its first Big Sky Conference victory of the season, 72-60, over the Northern Colorado Bears on Thursday at Hornets Nest.

“We came into this game knowing we had to win,” Christensen said.

With a 0-4 record in conference play, the game was a must-win if the Hornets want to have a shot at a postseason berth, which is still not a certainty.

Both teams started off slow, as the Hornets led 26-24 at halftime. The Hornets shot 29.4 percent from the floor in the first half and the Bears shot 28.6 percent.

The pace picked up a bit in the second half, ultimately resulting in a Sac State victory.

Christensen added nine rebounds and Koshiyama-Diaz dished out five assists. Forward Kylie Kuhns grabbed a game-high 12 rebounds and chipped in nine points.

“Hustle plays are what I bring to this team,” Kuhns said.

Head coach Jamie Craighead said she was pleased with the team’s defensive performance.

“We got matched up defensively out of our press, and that was something we had been working on all week,” Craighead said. “We’re not as bad of a defensive team as it looks.”

The Hornets came into the game allowing a Big Sky-high 86.6 points per game.

The game featured the top two scorers in the Big Sky &- Charday Hunt for the Hornets and Whitley Cox for the Bears &- yet neither of them nor their respective teams reached their season average in points.

Hunt finished with a season-low seven points on 1-7 shooting. She got into foul trouble and had her minutes limited because of it.

Cox scored 15 points on 6-19 shooting before fouling out late in the second half. She also picked up a technical foul in the game.

The star of the night for Northern Colorado was guard Courtney Stoermer, who recorded a triple-double &- 12 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists. She also committed one turnover. The Bears fall to 9-10 overall and 2-4 in conference play with the loss.

The Hornets move to 5-13 overall and 1-4 in Big Sky play with the victory. They next take the court on Sunday, as they play host to Northern Arizona University at 1:05 p.m. The game was originally scheduled for Saturday, but inclement weather caused the teams to postpone the game for one day.

Dustin Nosler can be reached at [email protected]