Washburn’s women’s basketball team scored the first six points, and that announced to Northwest Missouri that it was going to take a special effort to beat the Lady Blues.

It was Washburn that was special on defense. The Lady Blues held Northwest Missouri to 24 percent shooting in the first half and took a 15-point lead into halftime.

Nothing changed in the second half as Washburn cruised to an 80-66 victory Saturday afternoon in the semifinals of the MIAA Women’s Basketball Tournament at Municipal Auditorium.

Washburn, 25-3, will carry a 12-game winning streak into Sunday’s championship game. Tipoff is 1 p.m.