FAIRBANKS, Alaska — Traveling over 3,000 miles but still keeping up its recent impressive play, the Newman women's basketball team started off the North Star Invitational by turning back host Alaska-Fairbanks 71-61 Thursday evening.

KEY SEQUENCE

The Jets (4-2) took over the lead in the first quarter, pushing the margin out to 10 points early in the second half before the Nanooks (3-2) cut it to four thanks to a 6-0 run. They never got it to a one-possession game though, as Hannah Alexander scored two minutes later, and Bria DeGrate grabbed offensive rebounds and putbacks on two straight possessions to push the lead back out to 50-40 with 12 minutes left in the game.

HOW IT HAPPENED

-Alaska grabbed the early lead thanks to two buckets, but the Jets tied it up and went ahead for good on DeGrate's 3-pointer at the 6:03 mark of the opening quarter.

-Just a two-point game two minutes later, Cierra Tjaden and Alexander each hit two baskets to get Newman to its first double-digit lead of the game at 20-10 with 90 seconds still left in the quarter.

-The lead hovered around there for most of the second quarter, building as high as 12 on three occasions, but the Nanooks cut it down to a 37-31 lead at the break.

-A three-point play by Mali Wright made it a 10-point game at 44-34 before Alaska went on its push through the middle of the third. The Jets added another six-point spurt on buckets from Alexander, Wright and DeGrate to make it a 14-point margin late in the period.

-The lead stretched as high as 17 in the fourth quarter for the Jets, and the Nanooks managed to make it a single-digit lead just once for less than a minute.

LEADERS

Newman
Points: DeGrate 20. Rebounds: Tjaden, Natalia Hausmann 9. Assists: Tjaden, Wright 2. Steals: 3 with 2. Blocks: none.

Alaska-Fairbanks
Points: Jordan Wilson 30. Rebounds: Wilson 8. Assists: Victoria Milton 9. Steals: Milton 4. Blocks: none.

NOTES

-The Jets have now won four straight games, all by at least 10 points. The last time they had such a streak was in December of 2011.

-DeGrate netted 20 points on 8-of-14 shooting, the second time in three games that the sophomore put up at least 20 points and shot at least 55 percent from the floor.

WHAT'S NEXT

The Jets continue their trip to Alaska today with a game against Metro State.