Live from Vermillion
It's 10 minutes before tipoff in the DakotaDome, where UND and Wayne State are ready to play their Divsion II regional qaurterfinal game.
The NCAA is here. Wayne State fans already have had to take a banner down from their cheering section.
For a change, UND will not have more fans on hand. There are a few more Wayne State fans on hand as the drive between Wayne and Vermillion is about two hours.
After four mintues, it's tied 7-7. Kierah Kimbrough blocked Wayne's first shot, coming from 6-4 Jodie Boss. Karla Beck has a 3-pointer.
With 11:50 left in the first half, UND leads 16-13. Wayne State is athletic but is no match for UND inside. At this point, it looks like UND will have its hands full.
Wayne leads 21-18 with 8:26 to go. Wildcats don't have many rebounds, but two went for putbacks.
UND trails 28-20 with 6:21 to go as the Wildcats are on a 17-4 run. Sioux are missing easy shots inside and committing turnovers. Wayne is gaining confidence minute by minute.
Sioux are in serious trouble, trailing 34-22 wiht 2:52 left in the half. Wayne is on a 23-6 run. The Wildcats are smooth on offense, scoring penetration and back-door cuts. The Sioux are disjointed at best.
Halftime finally has arrived for UND. It couldn't come soon enough for UND, which trails 38-26 at the break. Wayne is dominating. UND managed only two field goals in the final 10 minutes of the first half. The Sioux are 2-for-10 on 3-pointers.
Sioux are shooting 29 percent, to Wayne's 45 percent. Sioux have 13 turnovers to 3 for Wayne. Mara Hjelle, a freshman reserve leads Wayne with 14 points. It is a career high.
If things don't change within the first few minutes of the second half, the Sioux bus will be headed north on I-29 later this afternoon.
With 15:31 to go, Wayne leads 48-40. Sioux are playing better, but so far Wayne hasn't shown any signs of buckling.
Sioux hanging around, but can't get the big run going as Wayne's ability to score off the drive is keeping the Wildcats in front. With 13:44 left, Wayne leads 53-46
Sioux cut the lead to 57-51 on back-to-back baskets by Mallory Youngblut. There is 11:47 to go. UND needs a couple of stops to get its quiet crowd into the game.
Sioux cut the lead to 59-56 on Beck's 3-pointer, and have a chance to tie, but Youngblut's 3 is off the mark. Wildcats respond with two free throws, but Kimbrough's two free throws at 9:20 cut Wayne's lead to 61-58.
Sioux are back, trailing 64-62 with 7:51 to go. Kimbrough is scoring inside. Wayne calls time.
Langen's basket ties the game at 64-64, but Kylee McGill drains a long 3-pointer with 6:51 to go for 67-64 lead. After McGill's 3-pointer, Sioux turn the ball over. Wayne is at the line for a 1-1 with 6:15 to go, leading 67-64
Wayne leads 73-70 with 3:25 to go and Wildcats are at the line for two. Sioux missed three shots inside before fouling on the rebound. McGill is carrying Wayne in the closing minutes.
McGill makes goth and Wayne leads 75-70.
Things look bleak with 1:09 to go. Wayne is up 80-75 and at the line for two. Sioux committed a costly turnover with 1:32 to go.
It's over. UND just didn't have enough to come back from a disasterous first half.
The final: Wayne 85, UND 78
UND's days as a Division II program are over.
The tournament rolls on. Concordia-St. Paul was upset by Minnesota State-Mankato in the second game, 73-70.
The crowd finally arrives for the day's main event - the South Dakota game against Colorado State-Pueblo. The Coyotes are off to a slow start. With 13:41 to play in the first half, Pueblo leads 9-6 as the Coyotes can't hit from the outiside.
Some more thoughts on the Sioux loss. The Sioux simply were not sharp early, a trend that had become evident in the final weeks of the regular season. The slow start cost UND. Had UND played the first half like it played the second, the Sioux likely would have been playing in the semifinal round.
But Wayne gained a lot of confidence from UND's poor start.
Kierah Kimbrough's play, however, stood out . She carried the Sioux scoring load in the team's final games of the season. It will be interesting to see if she can score at similar pace when UND enters Division I play next season.
South Dakota is coming back. The Coyotes now trail 16-14 after being down by 10. Coyote fans are finally getting into the game.
Amber Hegge, who Sioux coach Gene Roebuck called the most athletic player in the NCC, just scored to tie the game at 16. I'll be surprised if Pueblo can hang with the Coyotes. The Thunderwolves don't appear to be very athletic, at least compared to the Coyotes. It's now 18-16 Pueblo with 8 minutes left in the first half.
South Dakota begins to take control, leading 26-18 with 4:30 to go. Jeana Hoffman has hit a couple of 3-pointers to get the 1,000 or so fans into the game.
South Dakota missed its first 10 shots of the game, but now appears ready to take control. Pueblo calls time with 4:03 to go to regain its composure. The Thunderwolves didn't want to wait for the mandatory under 4-minute timeout.
It's halftime. South Dakota 35, Pueblo 23. Jeana Hoffman is taking over the game. No surprise. The Coyotes are shooting 36 percent, while Pueblo is at 30 percent.
South Dakota threatened to blow the game open, but Pueblo has cut the lead to 50-39 with nine minutes to go. Coyotes, however, don't appear to be in any danger.
Another thought about the Sioux game. UND could see Wayne coach Ryun Williams on the opposing bench next season. He's rumored to be a strong candidate to replace Chad Lavin at South Dakota. Lavin is retiring after the season.
Posted by: Wayne Nelson on 3/14/2008 at 12:46 PM | Comments (1) | Permalink
Sioux-Augie women
Greetings from the DakotaDome, where wireless Internet is finally available.
The NCC semifinal round is underway.
The Sioux women are off to a strong start, leading 15-4 after six minutes. Karla Beck has hit three straight 3-pointers. Augie is struggling from the field.
Augie is coming back. Now the Sioux can't hit. With 10:41 to go, UND leads 15-14 as the Vikings have scored 12 in a row. Augie has delivered back-to-back 3-point plays from Amy Puthoff and Dani Arens.
The Sioux are shooting 40 percent and have no turnovers, but can't stop Augie from scoring inside.
With 4:44 left in the half, UND leads 26-24.
We're at halftime, with the Sioux leading 34-28. Kierah Kimbrough leads the Sioux with 15 points, while Karla Beck has 12, making all four of her 3-pointers.
The Sioux are shooting 43 percent, compared to Augie's 33 percent. Surprisingly, Augustana is outrebounding UND 20-19.
UND could have a healthier lead had it made more of its inside shots. The Sioux are a combined 8-for-21 inside. But, they are 5-for-7 on 3-pointers.
UND has had a chance to distance itself from Augie, but hasn't capitalized.
Only four players have scored for UND.
Sioux start strong in the second half. Guinn's 3-pointer with 17:30 to go gives UND 42-29 lead.
With 12 minutes to go, UND leads 52-37.
There are 7 minutes to go. The game has been on near-even terms in the last 5 minutes. Sioux lead 62-50. Kimbrough has 25 points.
Sioux continue to shoot well from the perimeter. With 4:36 to go, UND leads 68-57. The Sioux have 11 3-pointers. Beck was 5-for-5 until missing her first with eight minutes to go.
UND cruise to an easy win behind Kimbrough's career-high 37 points.
Kimbrough scores 10 straight points for 80-59 lead before exiting. Augie had no answer for her inside.
It's a final. UND 82, Augie 63.
UND qualifies for its eighth straight NCC postseason title game.
Kimbrough's final numbers: 12-for-20 from the field, 13-for-14 from the free-throw line, 10 rebounds, 2 blocked shots. Quite a performance in 29 minutes.
Sioux men are up 40-38 at halftime.
Posted by: Wayne Nelson on 3/08/2008 at 12:58 PM | Comments (0) | Permalink
UND-Duluth playoff
It's halftime at the Betty.
UND leads Minnesota-Duluth 32-26 at halftime in the opening round of the North Central Conference women's basketball tournament.
Like last Saturday, UND can't pull away from the last-place Bulldogs. A 10-0 run late in the first half gave the Sioux a 32-23 lead, but Kylee Smith's 3-pointer with 14 seconds to go cut UND's lead to six at the break.
Ashley Langen and Kierah Kimbrough each have 10 points the for the Sioux, who are shooting 42 percent. Duluth is shooting 36 percent.
The UND men's team started slowly in Vermillion against South Dakota. However, after trailing 15-5 in the first few minutes, the Sioux cut the gap to 40-37 late in the first half in their first-round playoff game.
A small crowd has turned out for what likely will be the last home game for UND as a Division II school. It's one of the smallest crowds of the season.
With 10 minutes to go, UND is up 51-45. Not much has changed since halftime. UND did manage a 40-29 lead, but the Bulldogs refuse to go away.
A 9-2 run has given UND a 64-56 lead with 2:38 to go. UND just can't pull away from the Bulldogs,who have hit eight 3-pointers.
The Sioux men trail 70-68 with five minutes to go.
The Sioux women up up 67-61 with 36 seconds to go. It hasn't been easy for UND
It's final: UND 69, Duluth 61.
The teams have met three times since Feb. 16. The Sioux need to play another opponent.
Langen leads the Sioux with 22 points and 11 rebounds. Kimbrough finishes with 18 points and 10 boards.
In the biggest shock of the night, the Sioux men win in Vermillion. Emmanuel Little's basket with under a second to go wins it. The final UND 78, South Dakota 76.
By far, it's the biggest win in Brian Jones' two years as the Sioux coach.
Posted by: Wayne Nelson on 3/05/2008 at 7:33 PM | Comments (0) | Permalink
UND's big game
UND is probably a few days away from releasing its 2008 football schedule, but the marquee game for the Sioux will be against Dale Lennon and his Southern Illinois Salukis on Nov. 1.
Lennon's decision to schedule his former team probably wasn't an easy one. Southern Illinois - a team that could contend for a national title in 2008 - has a lot to lose by playing the Sioux late in the season. The Sioux have everything to gain, namely a win against a top Division I FCS program and a chance to beat their old coach.
Lennon did the right thing by helping his old team, one that has found it difficult to schedule games in its first season of Division I FCS football.
The teams likely won't play in 2009, but Lennon said he's open to games against the Sioux down the road.
Posted by: Wayne Nelson on 2/20/2008 at 11:07 PM | Comments (0) | Permalink
A solid start
So, how good is UND's 2008 football class?
That answer won't come from discussions on message boards or Web sites devoted to player rankings.
Time will answer the question.
UND's 2008 class, on the surface, appears to be solid. A main concern for the Sioux was the offensive line, which did lack depth last season. The Sioux recruited big linemen. A fourth of the 16-member class is offensive linemen. And the average weight of the recruited linemen is 303 pounds.
One player could see the field next year. Kenny Watkins from Plano (Texas) Senior High could contribute as a true freshman. He's a 5-foot-9, 172-pound cornerback. He's not a big corner, but his coach says he's tough and a great cover corner. He had some impressive stats, too. Playing at the highest level of Texas football, Watkins intercepted seven passes last season, registered 28 pass breakups and made 78 tackles.
It's doubtful that any of the offensive linemen recruited by the Sioux will see the field next season. It's easier for skill position players to make the jump from high school to college ball.
New Sioux football coach Chris Mussman is pleased with the class, even though UND lost four commitments to other programs. That will be a fact of Division I recruiting.
But Mussman said he won't claim victory on the recruiting trail. Wins come on the field, not on the road to a recruit's house. And those wins, if they come, won't be seen for at least a couple of years.
Posted by: Wayne Nelson on 2/08/2008 at 3:08 PM | Comments (3) | Permalink