UW-River Falls vs Bethel 11-22-16

Made my way back over to Robertson Center on the campus of Bethel University on this snowy/rainy evening on the 53rd anniversary of that fateful day in Dallas to take in this heavyweight non-conference battle that easily could have been an NCAA Tournament game this coming March - visiting UW-River Falls of the WIAC and host Bethel of the MIAC.  This game definitely had an NCAA Tournament "feel" to it and I'm glad I got settled in at Robertson Center in plenty of time to watch both teams warm-up.

The red-clad Falcons would try and seize some early momentum after the tip-off; grabbing a 6-2 lead. Two scores by lanky junior post Taylor Karge - a lay-up at the 9:06 mark and a short jumper from the right side at the 8:31 mark - along with a steal and lay-up the other way by senior guard Katie Messman gave UW-River Falls a 6-2 lead by the 7:30 mark but the Royals would respond quickly and it reflected the back-and-forth nature of this game from start to finish.  Two free throws from junior spark plug guard Abby Miller at the 7:00 mark and a score in the paint by freshman forward Taite Anderson at the 5:14 mark brought Bethel back to a single possession at 8-6 and then it was junior reserve guard guard Jasmin Bretoi striking fear from three-point land; uncorking one from the right wing area with 4:30 left that gave the Royals their first lead of the evening at 9-8.  Two free throws by Falcon reserve post Ali Clark with 3:43 left and one by Bethel senior reserve forward Kalli Zimmerman knotted the score at 10-all.  Bethel would twice take two-point leads on an offensive rebound and putback by sophomore post Hannah Johnson with 3:12 left and a lay-up by sophomore reserve guard Hannah Simpson but each time UW-River Falls would answer to tie the score.  Bretoi gave the Royals a 17-14 lead with her second trey of the game - this one coming from the left corner with 1:30 left - and one free throw by Anderson with :19.9 left had Bethel up by only two again at 18-16 but, fittingly anyway, the Falcons would forge an 18-all deadlock by the end of the first period when Karge made a pretty spin move and finished down low with just :00.7 left.

UW-River Falls would try to grab some momentum at the beginning of the second period when senior guard Brynn Liljander got into the scoring column with her strong drive and finish in transition that put the Falcons back out in front 20-18 but the see-saw battle would continue.  The Royals struck right back on an Anderson "3" from the left wing at the 8:30 mark for a 21-20 advantage and an offensive rebound and putback by Johnson at the 7:25 mark got the lead to 23-20.  Bethel would maintain this small edge until Karge had UW-River Falls back out in front 26-25 at the 5:49 mark with her drive and finish but right back came Royals junior guard Angie Kirchoff with her "3" from the left wing with 4:59 left that made it 28-26 Bethel.  Free throws by Liljander with 3:42 left and junior reserve post Hayley Rau with 3:06 left had the Falcons back out in front 30-28.  Right back came the Royals as Bretoi drained a "3" from the top of the key with 2:41 left for a 31-30 Bethel advantage but then UW-River Falls' Messman did the same from the right wing area with 2:25 left for a 33-31 Falcon lead.  The defending WIAC regular season champs would maintain this small edge until a Johnson score in the paint with :36 left knotted things up at 35-all and two Kirchoff freebies with just :07.3 left had the Royals up 37-35.  But UW-River Falls' Liljander would finish this second period as she started it and her pull-up jumper from near the free throw line with just :01.3 left had things deadlocked at 37-all going into the locker room at the half.  A quick glance of the first half box score reveals some interesting numbers.  Bethel owned the glass by a 23-12 count but also had more turnovers at 12-7.  UW-River Falls also shot slightly better from FG range at 46.4% compared to Bethel's 37.9% and the Falcons were also 10 of 10 from the charity stripe as well.

Neither side had been able to make any real decisive moves in the first half that might have had their opponent in a hole but that changed a bit once the third period got underway.  After Anderson put the Royals ahead 38-37 with a free throw at the 9:35 mark, UW-River Falls proceeded to go on an 8-0 run.  Sophomore forward Taylor Paulsrud put the Falcons back up 39-38 with her lay-up at the 9:25 mark and on the ensuing UW-River Falls possession, a pretty left-handed shot in the lane by Karge at the 8:44 mark made it a 41-38 ballgame.  Karge would strike again at the 8:10 mark with her short shot off the glass and two Paulsrud free throws at the 7:50 mark had the Falcons up 45-38.  It would have been easy for this young Bethel team to hit the panic button right then and there but instead they dug in their heels and battled right back.  Kirchoff uncorked a "3" from the right wing area at the 7:27 mark and a steal and lay-up the other way by Zimmerman at the 6:52 mark had the Royals back to within a single possession trailing 45-43.  Two Anderson freebies at the 5:48 mark once again had things knotted up at 45 a piece.  UW-River Falls would make another attempt to put distance between itself and their opponent.  Strong senior forward Kate Theisen knocked down a jumper from the top of the key with 4:29 left and sunk one free throw a bit later with 3:18 left for a 50-47 Falcon lead and a jumper from the free throw line by the versatile Karge had UW-River Falls up 52-47.  Once again Bethel battled their way right back.  An Anderson trey from the top of the key off of an inbounds pass with 1:51 left sliced the Falcon lead down to two at 52-50 and although Zimmerman would pick up her fourth foul a bit later with 1:27 left the Royals would not be denied.  Trailing 53-50, Bretoi again rained terror from three-point land with her bomb from the left wing that tied the game at 53-all and two Kirchoff free throws with :47.5 left put Bethel back out in front 55-53.  Two more free throws by sophomore reserve guard Hannah Simpson with :07.5 left stretched the lead to 57-53 and although UW-River Falls would inch a bit closer on two Messman free throws with just :01.3 left, the advantage that Falcon Head Coach Cindy Holbrook thought they had at the beginning of the period went out the window.

Bethel would attempt to build a bit of a cushion in the early moments of the fourth period as one Anderson free throw at the 9:03 mark and a "3" from the left corner by senior guard Shanni Moorse at the 8:27 mark gave the Royals a 61-57 advantage.  A Paulsrud "3" from the left wing area at the 7:43 mark allowed UW-River Falls to slice the deficit to one point at 61-60 but a score in the paint by Kirchoff at the 6:58 mark and a Zimmerman drive and finish at the 6:20 mark built the lead to 65-60. One Zimmerman freebie at the 5:19 mark had Bethel in the bonus and then Zimmerman; still riding those four fouls, connected with a lay-up at the 5:04 mark that drew a foul and sent the former Champlin Park standout for the obligatory free throw that now had the 12th-ranked Falcons staring at a 69-60 deficit and some real trouble.  Despite the fact that Johnson would foul out with 3:45 left, the Royals would still enjoy a seven-point lead when Moorse drained her second trey of the contest; this one from the left corner again that gave Bethel a 72-65 lead with 3:07 left.  But the Falcons had been through these desperate situations before and they calmly battled their way back.  Clark would get into the paint for one score with 2:54 left and, after a UW-River Falls timeout, Messman would snare a steal and dash the other way for a lay-up that drew a foul and allowed the Medford, Wisconsin native to sink the ensuing freebie that cut the Royals lead down to a scant two points at 72-70.  The Falcons would foil the next two Bethel possessions and then a turnaround jumper by Clark with 1:30 left tied the game at 72-all and the tension inside Robertson Center was real.  A "3" by Anderson from the left corner with 1:10 left gave the Royals a 75-72 lead but UW-River Falls would cut the deficit down to one at 75-74 on a Karge drive and finish with :54 left.  The Royals, now nursing a one-point lead, had an opportunity to ice the contest and they carefully worked the ball around the court; looking for just the slightest crack or opening.  With :32 left, Bretoi found herself open from behind the arc and launched a shot but this one wasn't true and rimmed out and Messman was able to gather in the defensive rebound.  Now it was the Falcons turn to try and deliver a final blow. Holbrook decided to let her squad work the ball around without calling a timeout and, with :07.6 left, Liljander got the ball and got herself up to the top of the key area inside the arc and uncorked what looked like to be the game-winner and a 76-75 UW-River Falls advantage.  Holbrook then used the timeout to set up her defense for one last stop in hopes of getting out of Robertson Center right then and there.  What she and her coaching staff could not have counted on, however, was Zimmerman getting fouled on the ensuing inbounds pass from just inside the half-court line with :07.2 left.  Zimmerman was able to knock down the front-end but the back-end attempt was just short and Liljander grabbed the rebound as the Falcons hustled downcourt for one last-gasp attempt.  Liljander got a shot off with :01 left that bounced off the rim so off to overtime we went tied at 76.

In the extra five minute session, Zimmerman gave Bethel a 78-76 lead with her lay-up with 4:28 left and an Anderson free throw with 4:08 left made it a 79-76 game but that advantage was wiped away when the Falcons' Messman connected with a jumper from the left wing that drew a foul and allowed her to sink the obligatory free throw that tied the issue once again at 79-all.  The Royals, however, would not let their opponent take advantage again.  A Zimmerman drive and finish with 2:59 left gave Bethel an 81-79 lead and the Royals stretched the lead to 83-79 on an Anderson lay-up with 1:58 left.  A Karge lay-up would cut the Bethel lead down to 83-81 but the experienced Zimmerman would get the lead to 85-81 on her lay-up with 1:06 left.  UW-River Falls would strike back quickly on a Theisen score in the paint with :59 left and Holbrook would call a thirty-second timeout to try and set up strategy.  The Falcons fouled Zimmerman with :40.3 left on the ensuing Bethel possession and though Theisen was the guilty party with her fifth foul that sent her to the bench, Zimmerman could only get the front-end of the two free throw attempts to go down that made it an 86-83 game.  But on the ensuing UW-River Falls possession, Messman could not get her lay-up attempt with :34 left to fall and Kirchoff; who was there to grab the defensive rebound, was fouled with :29.6 left.  The Barrington, Illinois native calmly sank both free throw attempts that now made it a two-possession game at 88-83.  The Falcons last lifeline faded away with a turnover with :15 left and now UW-River Falls had no choice but to foul in a vain attempt to preserve what little time left there was.  Zimmerman was sent to the line with :12.6 left where she sank one free throw for an 89-83 lead and although Clark would connect with a lay-up off of an inbounds pass with :05.8 left, it wasn't nearly enough as the Royals ran out the clock to claim a thrilling 89-85 victory over a nationally-ranked UW-River Falls team.

A disappointed Holbrook expressed some concern afterward with her squad with some the the mistakes her team made down the stretch.  Still, she gave credit where credit was due.  "They (Bethel) made the shots when they need them.  Give them credit."  She also added that "it was a fun game with a lot of intensity."  Indeed, this game definitely had an NCAA Tournament-feel to it.  While this one was arguably a tough loss for the Falcons to swallow, in the long-run, I don't think that this loss will hurt them any.  They're still going to be one of the two top teams in the WIAC and, barring catastrophic injuries to key players, it's very difficult for me to envision a scenario where they're not in play for the NCAA Tournament come late February/early March.  A happy and relieved Bethel Head Coach Jon Herbrechtsmeyer expressed how proud he was of his squad and also had a lot of good things to say about UW-River Falls as well and was in agreement how this game had an NCAA Tournament-feel to it.  I asked him about Zimmerman and was curious as to why she didn't start.  Apparently, Zimmerman tweaked an ankle this last weekend in the tournament they participated in where they came away with a split; losing to Carthage but knocking off Wisconsin Lutheran - teams that both made the NCAA Tournament field this last season.  But Zimmerman looked very strong in this game tonight and I think she'll likely work her way back into the starting line-up.  At the same time, it has to be a nice problem for Herbrechtsmeyer to have with all of these young faces now stepping up and providing quality minutes on the floor.  Furthermore, having now watched this Bethel team play twice, I think that I may have short-changed them a bit in my preseason predictions.  I think it's safe to say that, if they can stay healthy, they have to be a squad that can, at the very least, be in the title conversation.  That said, I think the MIAC will likely shape up to be a three-team race as opposed to just a two-team race.  Karge lead a balanced UW-River Falls attack with her 21 points while both Messman and Clark added 15 points and Liljander had ten points.  Bethel was very balanced as well as Zimmerman had 20 points and Anderson was right behind with her 19 points while Kirchoff contributed 14 points and Bretoi had 12 points.  Certainly a sore spot for Holbrook had to be Bethel owning the glass by a 43-34 count UW-River Falls had a decided edge with points in the paint (thanks to the Karge/Clark/Rau triumvirate) at 50-26 but Bethel had the edge in second-chance points at 13-5.