Usually Sacramento State is the one forcing turnovers but in this most recent meeting with Northern Colorado, the opposite was true.

The Hornets could only force 11 turnovers as they lost 79-63 to the Bears on Saturday in Greeley, Colo.

Coming into the game, Northern Colorado was ranked 10th in the Big Sky Conference in points but scored a season-high 46 points in the first half.

The Hornets started the game with five straight points from senior center Natasha Torgerson, but it was the Bears’ junior guard D’shara Strange who scored 12 first-half points to give Northern Colorado the lead.

The Bears eventually went on an 11-0 run with 6:53 remaining in the first half and took an 18-point lead into halftime.

Sac State senior forward Kylie Kuhns has averaged 11.6 rebounds this year but came up with only one rebound. She did score 10 points, however, on 4-9 shooting.

With the Hornets trailing 79-50 with 3:46 left, they received a spark from their benching that included guard Takara Burse.

Burse, a sophomore out of East Palo Alto, Calif., passed her career high with 12 points coming off the bench.

With the loss, Sac State’s record falls to 10-8 and 5-4 in the Big Sky. The Hornets return home Thursday when they host Northern Arizona.

Tipoff is at 7 p.m.

Follow Ryan on Twitter @rskuhn and for live game updates follow State Hornet Sports @sh_sports