Was over at the "new" Schoenecker Arena in the Anderson Athletic Complex earlier today for this rare Sunday afternoon titanic non-conference clash between WIAC powerhouse (and current #1) UW-Stevens Point and host St. Thomas. Upon my arrival, I found out that the Tommies were without BOTH All-Americans Taylor Young and Maggie Weiers for this game with ankle injuries. While Young is hopeful that she can return to action by the first of the year (perhaps sooner), Weiers is out for the year with ligament damage; a huge blow to this UST squad with such high hopes.
Nonetheless, things were relatively tight over the first few minutes as senior point guard Kelly Ring got the Tommies on the board first with a jumper from the elbow at the 19:39 mark that was quickly matched by Pointer standout senior guard Sam Barber's jumper at the 17:35 mark. With UW-Stevens Point holding a 5-4 lead at the 16:20 mark, the Pointers went on a 9-2 run over a nearly five minute stretch; highlighted by junior guard Jenna Pitt's "3" from the left top at the 11:46 mark. Despite a mini-push by the Tommies that consisted of a sweet drive and finish by sophomore guard Jen Dockter and a "3" sophomore reserve guard Carley Emery, the Pointers increased the lead back to eight points by the 8:32 mark when senior guard Liz Althoff made an unbelievable rebound and putback under the basket and got fouled in the process as well. At that point, it lookes as if the Tommies would be fighting an uphill battle the rest of the way.
But this UST squad, fresh off of its Final Four appearance this last season, is a resilient group - even without its two All-Americans in action. Junior "do it all" guard Kelly Brandenburg scored at the 8:19 mark but then it was the solid senior Ring's turn to stand out. Not once, but TWICE she made incredible steals and went for lay-ups the other way that fueled a 12-2 Tommie run that had the Pointer lead whittled down to 23-21 by the 6:06 mark. The Tommies would pull even at 26-all when sophomore reserve forward Elaine Warner nailed a "3" from the left corner at the 3:24 mark and the Tommies would pull even again at the 2:35 mark when sophomore forward/post Anna Smith out of Bloomington Jefferson was able to manuever inside and score. The Pointers, however, countered with a short jumper by sophomore Taylor Atkinson at the 1:45 mark and a score inside by lanky 6'2" post Myranda Tyler that allowed UW-Stevens Point to take a slim 33-30 lead into the locker room at the half.
The Pointers wasted no time in trying to put distance between themselves and their MIAC opponent as they opened up the second half on a very efficient 13-3 run highlighted by a Barber "3" from the right top that put the Tommies in a hole; down 46-33 by the 16:11 mark and had a lot of spectators in attendance - including your's truly - wondering if this depleted Tommie team could possibly respond once again. But whatever doubts I may have had were quickly erased as this incredibly resilient team responded once again; highlighted by some suffocating defense and incredibly solid play from both Ring and Dockter who were both nails on this day not to mention a rebounding machine in Smith who refused to be fazed by this daunting situation. And it must have made recent Tommie greats such as Jen Gillard, Anna Swanson, Carolyn Dienhart, Haley Loesch, and Ali Johnson - all in attendance - very proud of the current group that keeps the tradition going at UST.
After a freebie by Ring at the 15:28 mark, Smith was able to convert in transition at the 14:39 mark and then a "3" by reserve sophomore guard Carley Emery at the 14:09 mark finally gave this team some confidence that it was needing - and it proved to be contagious. Dockter made a hard drive and finish at the 12:57 mark and Smith did the same at the 10:36 mark. Junior reserve guard Anessa Hicks sank two shots from the charity stripe at the 10:26 mark and then Brandenburg banged home a "3" from the right wing at the 9:46 mark; completing an astonishing 15-3 run that tied the issue at 48-all. The Tommies then retook the lead at the 9:10 mark when sophomore reserve guard Hannah Hughes swished a "3" from the left corner.
Reeling from this counter-attack by the Tommies, the Pointers had to fight, scratch and claw for everything they got coming down the stretch. Trailing 55-50, Barber banged home a "3" from the top of the key at the 6:01 mark and made it a one-possession game again. But each time the Pointers threatened, it was either Ring or Dockter who held UW-Stevens Point at bay. Ring sank a "3" from the right corner at the 5:40 mark and then Dockter did the same from the left top at the 4:36 mark that upped the Tommie lead to 61-53. Barber refused to let her teams hopes fade quietly into the late afternoon darkness as she snared a steal and went the other way for a lay-up with 3:36 left and was able to score inside with 2:58 left that at least had the Pointers within striking distance. Pointer sophomore Taylor Bahr got her team to within one at 65-64 with 1:35 left when she connected with a jumper off the glass. But again, it was fortunate for the Tommies that they had a "Dockter" in the house as the sophomore made yet another incredible hard drive and finish at the 1:08 mark that got her fouled in the process that once again made it a two-possesion game at 68-64. Smith increased that lead to 70-64 with her jumper from the left elbow and after another Barber "3" from the top of the key that whittled the Tommie lead to 70-67 sophomore reserve guard Hannah Hughes hauled in a baseball pass as the Pointers were putting a lot of pressure on the inbounds pass and got a lay-up out of it for a 72-67 Tommie lead. Bahr hit a "3" of her own with just 08.7 left to cut the Tommie lead to 72-70 but Dockter was able to get the back end of a 1-and-1 on the ensuing possesion to make it 73-70 with :06.4 left. The Pointers had one more chance; they quickly got it down the court and got a decent look from behind the arc but the shot banged off the rim and the Tommies claimed a HUGE 73-70 win over the current #1 ranked team in the country.
Afterward, assistant coach Chris Dalhed told me that they really didn't try to say too much to the team when they were down double digits early in the second half. They just had to take things possession by possession. Also, despite the fact that the Tommies shot relatively poorly in the first half (33.3%), the fact that they were getting decent looks forced some changes in the defensive schemes by UW-Stevens Point that opened things up on the floor and gave the Tommies some opportunites to drive the ball inside. Head Coach Ruth Sinn was quick to praise her young players who all were able to rise to the occasion in a big-time moment when there was a lot on the line early on in the season (Hicks, Emery, Hughes, Elaine Warner, Alyssa Favilla). Certainly a big win like this gives this young group a lot of confidence but they should be that much better once Young is able to return to action. Perhaps even more, important, this win will FINALLY give the MIAC some much-needed recognition by the rest of the country (particularly by the clueless Chianti Dan-type NCAA Tournament selection committee members who have screwed the MIAC over royally the last several years when it comes to handing out tourney bids) that this is indeed an incredibly tough conference from top to bottom that can play with anyone in the nation.
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