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Steven Sir scored 21 points and Tyrone Bazy added 20 points as top-seeded Northern Arizona defeated fifth-seeded Sacramento State 98-83 in the Big Sky Conference semifinals Tuesday night. Northern Arizona (21-9) advanced to Wednesday night's final, where the Lumberjacks will meet second-seeded Montana, a 73-71 overtime winner over third-seeded Eastern Washington in the other semifinal. NAU has won 11 straight at home. Loren Leath came off the bench to lead the Hornets (15-15) with 20 points. The Lumberjacks are one win away from their third NCAA tournament berth and their first in six seasons. Even if they lose the conference final, the Lumberjacks are guaranteed an NIT berth as a regular-season conference champion. NAU didn't know what to expect as it took the floor for the first time in nine days. The Lumberjacks had finished the regular season with double-digit road losses to Western Kentucky and Montana wrapped around a victory at Sacramento State. By winning the regular-season title, NAU earned the right to host the final two rounds of the Big Sky tournament. The Lumberjacks had hoped that playing at 7,000 feet would work to their advantage. The thin air didn't bother the Hornets early in the game. They hit five of their first six shots on their way to a 15-7 lead after five minutes. But NAU went on a 16-4 run to take a 28-23 lead midway through the half. The big shots came from Sir, who hit a three-pointer and a baseline jumper and added a pair of free throws. Sir, the nation's most accurate three-point shooter at 49.7 percent, hit 5-of-7 three-pointers. NAU turned up the defensive pressure midway through the half, limiting the Hornets to one field goal in a nine-minute span. A 19-5 spurt over the final seven minutes gave the Lumberjacks a 49-34 halftime lead. At intermission, Sacramento State had more personal fouls (14) than field goals (11) and was outrebounded 25-10. The Hornets opened the second half by hitting four of their first six field goals. But Bazy, a slashing 6-foot guard, scored four consecutive baskets to help NAU maintain a comfortable lead. Sacramento State used a 12-2 run to pull within 80-76 with 5:30 to play only to see Sir and Ruben Boykin Jr. have three-point plays to put NAU up 86-76.
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