SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – The Concordia University women's basketball team (15-13, 11-11 NSIC) dropped the regular season finale in a thrilling double overtime game at the Stewart Center against Sioux Falls (17-9, 13-9 NSIC) by a score of 87-79 on Saturday night. Anika Whiting matched her career high with 33 points as she added nine boards in a massive 49 minutes of action.
 
With the loss, the Golden Bears finish the regular season as the sixth seed in the NSIC South, ensuring a first round matchup with third-seeded Minnesota Crookston on Wednesday night in the NSIC/Sanford Health Tournament.
 
The Golden Bears erased a double-digit second half deficit, led by Whiting's 21 points in the second half, but they couldn't get over the top to grab the win.
 
Whiting hit 11-26 from the floor and an efficient 11-12 from the free throw line overall as she anchored the Concordia lineup in her final regular season game in navy and gold. The 33 points matched her career high scored against Wayne State back on Jan. 10^th and marked her fourth career outing with 30-plus points.
 
Ameshia Kearney and Mishayla Jones were the only other Golden Bears in double figures as Kearney finished with 18 points, four boards and four assists while Jones had 14 points and 10 rebounds for her second career double-double.
 
The Cougars boasted five players in double figures, led by Alison Klostergaard's massive 24 points and 14 rebounds off the bench. Sam Knecht also had a double-double with 11 points and 12 boards.
 
After a strong first half shooting, the Golden Bears shot below 30.0% in both the second half and overtime as they finished the game shooting 35.6% (26-73). The Cougars finished with a 39.7% (29-73) mark for the game.
 
Sioux Falls jumped ahead early as they built a 12-4 advantage by the 17:13 mark of the first half. The Golden Bears answered back with the next nine points of the game to take their first lead at 13-12. The two teams remained nearly even for much of the next 10 minutes as Concordia trailed by one at 21-20 with 5:14 to play in the half.
 
For the final five plus minutes of the half, the Cougars slowly began to pull away as their lead reached six at 30-24 and later reached eight at 34-26 before they settled in with a 34-28 lead heading into the locker rooms.
 
Both teams shot fairly well as CU hit 46.4% from the floor in the half and USF hit 43.8% in what was a clean half with only nine fouls and four free throw attempts combined.
 
After the teams traded baskets to open the half, Concordia chipped away at the lead and eventually cut it down to two at 39-37 with 16:49 to play as it appeared to be headed towards a tight finish. The lead remained two at 43-41 with 13 minutes to go before the Cougars embarked on an 8-0 run to extend their lead to double figures for the first time all night. Their lead reached as large as 12 at 57-45 with 8:46 to play but the Golden Bears wouldn't go away.
 
With USF still leading 59-48 with eight minutes to go, the Golden Bears turned up the heat defensively and fed Whiting as they held Sioux Falls without a field goal for over six minutes as they used a dominant 16-1 run to take the lead at 64-60. The Cougars recovered to tie it at 64 with just under a minute to play.
 
After CU failed to convert on their possession, Varsho was fouled and sent to the line with 21 seconds to go with a chance to put USF up two. She hit 1-2 and Nicks grabbed the board as Concordia had a chance to win it in regulation. Whiting drew a foul with 2.7 seconds to play with an opportunity to put the Golden Bears on top and made the first but missed the second. USF's half-court heave at the buzzer fell short as the game headed to overtime with the two teams tied at 65.
 
Scoring came fast and furious in the first overtime as both teams hit big shot after big shot. Kearney gave Concordia a three point lead at 68-65 and again at 72-69 but the Cougars had an answer for every bucket. Four straight in favor of Sioux Falls gave them a 73-72 lead with 1:48 to go but Kearney answered back with another three to put CU back up 75-73. Klostergaard hit two free throws with 50 seconds left to tie it at 75 and each team had chances to score the go-ahead bucket down the stretch, including a three attempt at the buzzer from Kyrah Fredenburg, but neither team took advantage as the game moved to a second overtime.
 
Sioux Falls led wire to wire in the second overtime as they took the lead just seven seconds into the period and didn't let it go. A 9-2 run spanning the first three minutes put it out of reach as USF led 85-77 with two minutes to go. Kearney hit two at the line to cut it to five but the Cougars scored the final three points to claim an 87-79 win in the regular season finale.