LAKEWOOD, CO- The Cougars closed the weekend on Saturday as they took on Nelson University (AZ) at home. A huge second half and one of the best defensive performances in program history led CCU to a blowout victory 80-36. 

It was a slow start for both teams, with Nelson taking an early 5-0 lead before a three point play from Amaya Felix got the Cougars on the board. Hayley Luther nailed a three-pointer, and an Addison Wragge jumper put CCU in front. A low scoring first quarter saw the hosts take a 12-11 lead to the second. 

Luther continued what would be a career day with another three, and the offense continued to find their rhythm with a Ja'Shelle Johnson layup. The defense continued to force turnovers and make stops, allowing the offense some quick points in transition to take a 33-18 lead to the break. 

A pair of layups from Johnson to start the second half grew the lead to 19, and CCU never looked back as they rolled in the second half. Luther and Felix hit jumpers, while Maley Wilhelm and Samantha Wattawa got layups to go. Jordon Heckert nailed a three late in the third as the Cougars took a 54-30 lead to the final period. 

Johnson and Luther continued the offensive attack with three-pointers, and a Wragge jumper and another three from Luther had CCU up huge. The Cougars were able to empty the bench and play every player on the roster, and Nicole Burns came in and hit a layup. Faith Ramsey hit the first field goal of her career as the freshman got a layup to go with under a minute to play as the bench and crowd erupted to celebrate a dominant 80-36 victory. 

It was a great night for the Cougars as they recorded the second most steals in a single game in program history with 22. 12 players scored for CCU, led by Luther with a career high 21 points on 5-10 shooting from deep. Johnson had 14 points, while Heckert pulled down a team high 12 rebounds. Johnson and Wilhelm led their team with four steals apiece. 

Colorado Christian will jump back into conference play with a home matchup against UCCS with tipoff set for 5 p.m. MST on January 6.