The University of Minnesota Duluth women's basketball team completed the weekend sweep on the road this afternoon, finding their offensive footing in the second half of a dominant win over Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) opponent Wayne State College.
Halftime: UMD (34) - WSC (21)
The Bulldogs would find themselves at an early deficit, with a WSC three pointer putting the score at 4-7 through the first three minutes of the game. The Bulldogs would respond swiftly though, going on an eight unanswered point run over the middle four minutes of the quarter to outscore the Wildcats 11-4 to end the first. A Gilbertson three pointer would help UMD continue to build their lead and secure the first five points of the second quarter. The teams would trade buckets back and forth through the middle six minutes before the Bulldogs, with the help of another Gilbertson three, would close out the half with five unanswered points and take a 13 point lead before the intermission.
The Bulldogs finished out the first half shooting 11-34 (32.4%) from the field, 4-11 (36.4%) from outside the arc, and 8-8 from the charity line. The Bulldogs were able to simply create more chances at the basket for themselves throughout the first 20 minutes, forcing eight turnovers and out-rebounding the Wildcats 21-15 with seven of those being offensive rebounds for UMD.
Final Score: UMD (70) - WSC (57)
A pair of Wildcat three pointers would help WSC narrowly outscore the Bulldogs 14-11 to open the second half, minimizing the deficit to just 10 points with three minutes left in the third. However, a burst of offensive production by UMD would give them a 15-0 run through the final minutes of the third and into the opening three minutes of the fourth. The Bulldogs find themselves at a 60-37 lead with seven minutes left in the contest and look to ride their lead out till the end. WSC would not go down without a fight, putting up a nine point run through the middle minutes to outscore the Bulldogs 22-10 to end the game. Though it proved to be two little too late as UMD would walk away with the win and complete the weekend road sweep.
UMD closed out the game shooting 27-61 (44.3%) from the field, 6-18 (33.3%) from three point range, and 10-12 (83.3%) from the free throw line. While the defensive stats seemed to even out towards the end between these two teams, with both teams ending with 12 turnovers, the Bulldogs really found their stride on the offensive side of the ball and continued to out rebounds the Wildcats.
Top Performers
Senior guard Ella Gilbertson led the Bulldog's offensive effort tonight shooting 6-9 (66.7%) from the field and 4-4 from the charity stripe for a game high 19 points, while also collecting five rebounds and an assist. Graduate student guard Taytum Rhoades shot 5-13 (38.5%) from the field and 4-4 from the line for 14 total points while also tallying six rebounds, one steal, and a game high six assists.
Looking Ahead
Women's basketball returns to Romano Gymnasium next weekend for their final two game homestand of the regular season. The action for the Bulldogs will tip off on Friday, Feb. 9, at 5:30 PM.
