Made my very first visit to UST's new Anderson Athletic & Recreation Complex - which houses the "new" Schoeneker Arena - for UST's home opener vs. nationally-ranked (#6 in the nation) UW-Stevens Point last night. First, I want to apologize for not getting this on last night like I wanted; I was so bloody tired when I got back and had to get up and go to work in the (early) A.M. that beauty sleep was a dire necessity. In any event, it was a great game to watch and it had the feeling of an NCAA Tournament game.
Ruth Sinn's starting line-up consisted of Carolyn Dienhart at the PG spot and willowy sharp-shooter Ali Johnson at the #2 spot while the front line consisted of Jazmin Townsend, Sarah Smith, and Rachel Booth at the post. UW-Stevens Point's line-up was just as formidable with Andrea Flease, Christin Coles, Brooke Allen, Ashley Averkamp, and Britta Peterson. UST got off to a good start in this one; grabbing a 5-0 lead and was able to hold a slim advantage over the Pointers until the 9:44 mark when UW-Stevens Point tied the game at 17-all. What impressed me about UST is how newcomers Maggie Weiers and Taylor Young were able to come in and make a huge impact right away. From a pure height standpoint, UST had a definite advantage but what concerned me over the course of the first half was UW-Stevens Point's quickness at all positions; even from post player Peterson who showed her versatility when she hit a trey to give the Pointers a brief lead at 22-19 at the 8:20 mark; capping an 8-2 run by UW-Stevens Point. You could see how Flease was making Dienhart's life totally miserable out on the perimeter. Still, UST managed to step on the gas and get the advantage again when Ali Johnson canned two big treys coming down the stretch and both Weiers and Young continued to do damage down low for the Tommies to give them a 40-37 halftime lead. I never did see or hear any shooting statistics but I'm guessing that both teams were shooting close to 50% perhaps which gives you an idea of the quality of play from both teams.
The second half also started well for the Tommies as the willowy blonde sharp-shooter Johnson drained another "3" at the 16:33 mark to give the Tommies their biggest lead of the night at 49-43. It was MAYBE there where UST needed to apply the thumbs to the proverbial windpipe of UW-Stevens Point. But the Pointers then showed why they're the #6 team in the country as they cooly responded; cutting the Tommie lead back down to a more manageable 2 points. Also, UW-Stevens Point was incredibly lucky in landing transfer Sam Barber from Winona State as she played a HUGE role for the Pointers in the second half that would eventually propel the Pointers on to ultimate victory. There was a shaky moment for the Pointers when post Peterson was out with a cramp around the 8:09 mark but less than two minutes later the score was tied at 61. Then, at the 4:11 mark, UW-Stevens Point made their move. They got on a quick 4-0 run that got them a 67-64 lead which they would never relinquish. A couple of minutes later with UW-Stevens Point clinging to a tenuous 2 point advantage, Barber again came through with a huge 3-pointer to give the Pointers a 70-65 lead. Booth was on the bench for UST at this critical point and, although she did come back in at the 2:20 mark, it may have been too little, too late. The Pointers would hang on to steal a huge, non-conference game on the road 72-67. I guess what stood out to me again was how UW-Stevens Point really turned up the heat defensively on the Tommies and made UST pay with turnovers. Another thing that hurt the Tommies down the stretch in a close game - MISSED FREE THROWS! Again, I don't have the stats but this really made a huge difference as UST had ample chances to knot the game back up again. Perhaps Coach Ruth Sinn summed it up best when I had a chance to speak with her afterward. She mentioned that "we did not do a good job with keeping our poise when they made their run at us." She also added that it was something of an aberration with the missed FTs as they had made 34 straight in practice the day before (!). Presumably, they'll have worked on this practice today and tomorrow before they head off to Los Angeles to take on Occidental.
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