The final three quarters of basketball was pure domination by the University of Minnesota Duluth as it secured the weekend sweep with a 60-39 Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference win over Southwest Minnesota State University at Romano Gymnasium Saturday afternoon. The Bulldogs trailed 18-8 after the first quarter but turned the tables quickly as they outscored the Mustangs 52-21 in the final 30 minutes of action. After a standout defensive performance last night against the University of Sioux Falls, UMD held SMSU to under 40 points, the second straight night of holding team under that mark and now the ninth time since the turn of the century.

Sophomore forward Sarah Grow was a disruptive force for the Bulldogs as she dictated the game on both ends. Grow led all scorers with 20 points on a effective 10-for-17 shooting from the floor. The 20 points by Grow was a season high, one off her collegiate best. She also pulled in a game-high eight rebounds and a game-high five blocks in 31 minutes. During the second and third quarters, Grow combined to go 9-of-11 for 18 points as UMD flipped from trailing by 10 to leading by 17 heading to the fourth. She had four blocks alone in the third quarter.

The Bulldogs nearly made program history as they almost shut out the Mustangs in the second quarter. UMD held Southwest Minnesota State to two points during the 10-minute period. The Mustangs went 1-for-8 in the quarter and finally put points on the board with 1:39 left. SMSU coughed up the ball the first six possessions and didn't register its first shot until four minutes into the quarter. Erin Baxter ended the Bulldogs' 15-0 run off her free-throw line jumper.

UMD continued to build its lead coming out of the half. It outscored the Mustangs by 14 in the third thanks to 64.3 percent shooting. Senior forward Emma Boehm was the catalyst in the UMD offense coming out of halftime. She dished three assists and found the basket herself on a jumper just outside the paint. Boehm was locked in as she started a break after a Grow block, which was finished off by sophomore guard Ann Simonet, who knocked down a season-high 14 points,for a three on the left wing. Simonet's triple sparked a 16-0 run that put the game out of reach.

The Mustangs (4-5; 1-3 NSIC) finished the night 15-for-57 from the floor including 5-for-26 (19.2 percent) from long range. Southwest Minnesota State fell victim to the daunted Bulldog defense, who is allowing opponents to connect on only 21 percent from three-point land. The Bulldogs shot a respectable 43.3 percent for the game. 

UMD (4-2; 3-1 NSIC) will take a break from conference action and will finish up its non-conference schedule this coming Wednesday, Dec. 19 with a date with Michigan Tech University. First tip is scheduled foe 1:00 p.m.


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