SIOUX FALLS, S.D. 鈥� Victory No. 20 for the North Dakota State women鈥檚 basketball team on Saturday afternoon was significant for two reasons: One, reaching that number of wins is something that hasn鈥檛 happened in 19 years.
Two, the Bison defeated the University of Denver 72-60 in the first round of the Summit League tournament at the Denny Sanford Premier Center.
ADVERTISEMENT
NDSU went more to the power game to advance to Monday鈥檚 3 p.m. semifinals against the winner of Sunday鈥檚 game between Oral Roberts and the University of North Dakota. The Bison had 46 of their points within the confines of the free throw lane, also known as points in the paint.
In the process, NDSU improved to 20-10. The last team to reach that number of wins was 2004-05 when the Bison went 26-1 playing an independent schedule during the beginning years of the Division I reclassification.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 a milestone usually for a season is 20-plus wins, you had a good year,鈥� said head coach Jory Collins. 鈥淚鈥檓 hoping we get to the point where that鈥檚 the norm and see what we can do above that. I also do want to make sure we celebrate those things with this group, first time we鈥檝e done that in a long time. I鈥檓 proud of them and the direction that they鈥檙e taking us.鈥�
It was only NDSU鈥檚 fourth tournament win in its Summit history that started in 2009. Three of those victories have come against Denver.
The Bison had the upper hand all game, although it wasn鈥檛 the blowout of their two regular season meetings. NDSU finished the first quarter scoring nine of the final 11 points to take a 25-16 lead. Two factors played into the good start: an aggressive attitude bent on not playing like last year鈥檚 first round game and a lineup that could score from any of the five positions.
Bison guard Heaven Hamling did her thing and finished with a season-high 25 points. But it was junior forward Abbie Draper who did the damage underneath. She had 12 of her 16 points in the first half that ended with the Bison up 39-28.
鈥淲e got a lot of good looks off the plays we ran, some throw backs and throw ins and we were finishing around the rim,鈥� Draper said. 鈥淪o we just kept pushing it in there.鈥�
ADVERTISEMENT
The Pioneers didn鈥檛 go away, however. A 10-2 spurt midway in the third quarter got them within 50-46.
鈥淥ne thing about this team is we will never quit if there is time on the clock,鈥� said DU guard Jordan Jones, who led her team with 16 points.
They had a chance to cut it further, but NDSU finished the frame by scoring seven straight for a 60-49 advantage heading to the final 10 minutes.
The Bison made it 11 straight in the first few minutes of the fourth and it was a 15-point advantage. In the end, it was NDSU鈥檚 size that made a difference with the 6-2 Draper and 6-2 backup forward Avery Koenen, who finished with 10 rebounds.
鈥淚 think they use their length really well,鈥� Jones said. 鈥淚 feel like they try to intimidate teams with their length on the defensive side of the ball.鈥�
Denver 16 28 49 60
NDSU 25 39 60 72
ADVERTISEMENT
DU (8-22): Minett 1-5 0-0 2, Smith 3-9 2-2 10, Robles 4-9 3-3 11, Jones 5-14 5-8 16, Counsel 3-6 4-4 12, With 3-6 0-1 9, Wilson 0-2 0-0 0, Pahl 0-1 0-0 0. Totals: 19-52 14-18 60.
NDSU (20-10): Draper 7-11 2-6 16, H. Hamling 9-15 4-4 25, Evans 5-8 5-5 17, Schulte 2-7 0-0 4, Krzewinski 2-7 0-0 4, Simon 0-3 0-0 0, Koenen 3-6 0-0 6, Mackenzie 0-1 0-0 0, T. Hamling 0-2 0-0 0, Graham 0-1 0-0 0. Totals: 28-61 11-15 72.
Total fouls: DU 14, NDSU 14. Fouled out: none. Rebounds: DU 28 (Jones 6); NDSU 42 (Koenen 10). 3-point goals: DU 8-19 (Smith 2-6, Robles 0-3, Jones 1-1, Counsel 2-2, With 3-5, Wilson 0-1, Pahl 0-1); NDSU 5-14 (H. Hamling 3-4, Evans 2-2, Krzewinski 0-3 , Mackenzie 0-1, T. Hamling 0-2, Simon 0-1). Assists: DU 9 (Jones 4); NDSU 10 (Schulte 5). Turnovers: DU 12 (Jones 5); NDSU 12 (Evans 4).
The Trust Project
