bismarck, n.d. - it was a lesson in simplicity: regardless of past results, expectations or control of the game, the team with the most points on the scoreboard when the final buzzer sounds is deemed the winner. The university of mary needed just a single edge in the game, and it came as a three-pointer fell with 1.6 seconds remaining in their 67-66 upset win over #20 concordia university. The up and down game saw multiple large leads for the golden bears, but a season low offensive put-out spelled disaster and dropped concordia to 9-2 in the nsic (15-3 overall), while the marauders picked up their 3rd league win to settle in at 7-11, 3-8 nsic. box score
the roller coaster game started out just as many other games have for concordia this season, quickly working up a double figure lead and troubling the opponent with a fast defense. The tide changed in the final minutes of the half before cu rolled out another large lead in the second period. The marauders again chipped away, however, and gave themselves a shot at doing what most other opponents have been unable to do this season, to stay in the game and have a shot at it down the stretch. The final and most damaging blow was dealt by a freshman, shauna knife, who sunk the go-ahead three-pointer with 1.6 seconds remaining. It was the university of mary's first and only lead of the game.
just minutes into the night's action, fans at the mcdowell activity center were well aware that shots from beyond the arc would play a key role in the northern sun matchup, but nobody would have guessed that it would be the marauders that would use the long-ranger for the win. Concordia hit four threes and even completed a trio of penalty shots to build up a 29-16 lead just 10 minutes into play. Senior kali olstad (g, elgin, minn.) hit three of the five three-point plays in that stretch. jamie jones (g, sr., mounds view, minn.) gave the golden bears their largest lead of the game, up 16 points at the 6:05 mark.
but beyond anyone's imagination, the marauders closed the half out with a 16-2 run, allowing cu just one field goal in the final five minutes of the half. The golden bears snuck into the locker rooms with a 39-37 lead.
whatever inspirational words cu head coach paul fessler might have bellowed during the intermission worked only temporarily for the golden bears in the second half. The squad did manage to jump back up by double figures, a maurika hickman (g, jr., minneapolis, minn.) layup in transition giving cu its largest second half lead at 56-44 with 11 minutes remaining. A hickman triple gave the golden bears another 12 point lead, 63-51, around the 5:40 mark, but the rewind button was hit at precisely that moment and concordia's game swirled quickly down the drain.
u-mary freshman guard knife grabbed a defensive board and fanned the hopes of her squad when she hit a three-pointer on the resulting possession, bringing cu's lead down to just seven points, 63-56. Both teams then went dry from the field for a few minutes as the defenses recognized the weight of their duties. Only free throws went on the board until the 1:09 mark, when um's kayla rogers sunk the marauders' second three of the game to bring it to a three-point game, 64-61.
the marauders stopped concordia and liz sipma's work in the paint set the score at 64-63 in favor of concordia with just nine seconds remaining. zoraa quoie (g, jr., woodbury, minn.) did her job by hitting both free throws at the eight second mark, and the university of mary converted only the front end of a two-shot charity set with five seconds left, but the most important rebound of the game came as an offensive board for um's cassandra kelsch. The marauders executed their last-second play to a tee, with kelsch finding knife available for the game-winner, which she hit and gave u-mary its first lead of the game, the only lead that mattered.
looking at concordia's box score, the thing that stuck out most aside from the season low points total was the unusual discord in scoring balance. Hickman had a career high 27 points from 10-of-17 shooting and four threes hit, but she was just one of two players to finish in double figures for cu. Olstad had a 12-point, 11-rebound double-double. The golden bears shot below the 40% mark for just the second time of the year, hitting 39.7% in the loss. They also missed several opportunities from the stripe, missing five of 14 opportunities. Concordia's post players combined for five points.
the university of mary hit just three three-pointers in the game, but all of them came in the final five minutes of play. The team's defense allowed concordia a single field goal in the final five minutes of both combined halves and finished the game with a 16-3 run. The game's hero, knife, led her team with 15 points. Two other marauders had 11 points each. The university of mary shot 40.4% from the field and out-rebounded cu 39-36.
the golden bears will lick their wounds in the next week and return to the comforts of the gangelhoff center with the history put behind them. They no longer have sole possession of the nsic lead, instead sharing the duties with augustana college. The team will get an immediate opportunity to grab back the lead, as they host the vikings on friday night. The last time the teams met was at the nsic holiday hoopsfest in november, when the golden bears handed augie an embarrassing 95-68 decision in non-conference play. Cu also hosts wayne state next weekend.
