- Teams
- Overview
- Baseball
- News
- Roster
- Facts
- Coaching Staff
- Recruits
- Schedule
- Stats
- Facilities
- Bulldog Fall Instructional Camp
- Junior Bulldog Fall Instructional Camp
- Live Stats
- CAMPS & CLINICS
- Against the Competition
- All-Americans
- All-Conference Selections
- All-Time Results
- Bulldogs in the Pros
- Season Records
- Team Awards
- Career Records
- Basketball – Men's
- Basketball – Women's
- Cross Country – Men's
- Cross Country – Women's
- Football
- Hockey – Men's
- Hockey – Women's
- Soccer
- Softball
- Tennis
- Track – Men's
- Track – Women's
- Volleyball
- Inside Bulldog Athletics
- Bulldog Club
- Tickets
Teams
Basketball - Men's - News
BULLDOGS STAY HOT; SLIP PAST GOLDEN BEARS 84-79
Saturday, January 10, 2009
After their crucial win Friday night, the University of Minnesota Duluth men's basketball team earned the title of the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference's best.
With the target on their back Saturday night, the Bulldogs (13-5 overall; 7-1 NSIC) were tested by Concordia-St. Paul (6-8; 4-3), but like all leaders, came through on top.
In front of packed house of 803 faithful at Romano Gymnasium, UMD used their fast-paced offense to nab a thrilling 84-79 come-from-behind conference victory against the rival Golden Bears.
The game started out quickly, as both upbeat squads ran the ball up-and-down the floor with each other, in which the first frame included 11 lead changes and a pair of ties.
As each team battled back-and-forth throughout the half, Concordia-St. Paul found themselves up by as much as eight at one point, but UMD cut into the lead within the final minutes, finishing the frame trailing 39-34 at recess.
After the break, the Golden Bears started out hot, as they increased their lead to 10 points, taking a 46-36 advantage early in the second half. However, the conference-leading Bulldogs stormed back to regain the lead 51-50 with 12 minutes to play.
It was around the seven-minute mark that UMD opened their largest lead of the evening, as they increased the margin to eight points, while holding off Concordia-St. Paul for the rest of the contest.
In the win, the Bulldogs exchanged the lead with the Golden Bears a total of 19 times, while both clubs were knotted up three times during the entertaining affair. UMD's victory also marks their season-high fifth straight, including their fourth consecutive over a conference foe.
"The guys just hung in there and found a way to win," said Bulldog head coach Gary Holquist, when talking about their come-from-behind victory. "I've coached some good teams, but not many would be able to do what these guys did out there tonight."
In total, UMD had four players score in double figures, as they shot higher percentages from the floor and behind the arc than visiting Concordia-St. Paul, while they totaled more assists and committed fewer turnovers than the Golden Bears.
The Bulldogs were guided by their senior center, John Vaudreuil - who carried his team down the stretch, scoring consecutive buckets in the closing minutes - as he poured in a team-high 18 points and four rebounds in the conference victory.
Fellow senior guard Steve Klass also produced when the pressure was on, as they captain sank a pair of his team-leading three long-range bombs to give UMD the lead. The Seymour, Wis. native was on fire, as he drained five of his six shots from the field, missed only one of his shots from downtown and was perfect from the charity stripe.
Junior guard Ron White also racked 16 points, seven boards and six assists on the night, while junior forward Brian Sykora tallied 12 points and added four rebounds in the Bulldog victory.
UMD will now take their hot-streak out west, as they are set to clash with a pair of NSIC colleagues next weekend. Friday evening (Jan. 16) sees the Bulldogs collide with Mary (3-10; 1-6) at 8:00 p.m. in Bismark, N.D., while Saturday (Jan. 17) UMD will have an engagement with Northern State (12-2; 5-2) - a team the Bulldogs were defeated 63-59 earlier this season - at 8:00 in Aberdeen, S.D.
Return to all news.