UW-Superior vs Augsburg 11-18-16

Made my way over to Si Melby Hall on the campus of Augsburg College on this cold, windy, and snowy Friday evening of Beat SC week to take in this intriguing early-season non-conference clash between UW-Superior out of the UMAC and host Augsburg of the MIAC.  Thankfully, the Twin Cities were spared the wrath of Winter Storm Argos while it wreaked havoc on western and central Minnesota so I didn't have much problem getting over there other than rush hour traffic.  I was curious about this new look Augsburg team with all the young freshmen on the roster and how they would handle things after the big win on the road Tuesday night at UW-Stout.

One could argue that this could be the MIAC's version of the "Fab Five" although, in reality, Head Coach Ted Riverso inserted junior post Hannah Steinhaus to go along with four freshmen - point guard Aiza Wilson and guard Camryn Speese both out of DeLaSalle and K'Aezha Wubben out of Hopkins and Tamira McLemore out of Eagan.  However, it would be the visiting Yellowjackets that would do the stinging early and often.  Two free throws by junior guard Hailey Kontny at the 9:41 mark and a short Kontny jumper at the 8:54 mark gave UW-Superior a quick 4-0 lead and a lay-up in transition by versatile junior post Jade Tucker at the 8:23 mark put the Auggies in an early 6-0 hole. A Speese lay-up at the 7:53 mark and a Wubben lay-up after a steal at the 6:19 mark along with one McLemore free throw at the 6:05 mark had Augsburg back within a possession at 8-5 but the Yellowjackets would fly fast and furious again.  Freshman reserve forward Eva Reinertsen connected with a short jumper off of an inbounds pass at the 5:44 mark and two free throws by sophomore reserve forward Hannah Norlin at the 5:00 mark got the lead up to 12-5.  Junior guard Amelia Leger knocked down a short shot with 4:39 left and two free throws by Tucker helped UW-Superior double up the Auggies 16-8.  Worse yet for Augsburg was that the Yellowjackets were already in the bonus and when Tucker connected with a lay-up in transition with 3:44 left for an 18-8 UW-Superior advantage, the Auggies Riverso knew he had a problem on his hand and he called a timeout to try and rectify the situation.  But UW-Superior was just warming up.  Kontny drilled a "3" from the left corner with 3:18 left and then Leger drained a "3" from the left top area a short time later with 2:52 left that stretched the Yellowjacket lead to 24-8 before Speese finally broke the Augsburg drought with her lay-up in transition.  The damage was done, however, and two Kontny free throws with 2:19 left and a Kontny lay-up in transition with 1:03 left made it a 28-10 ballgame although Speese was able to knock down two free throws with :31.9 left that made it 28-12 going into the second period.

Things just seemed to get progressively worse for the Auggies in the opening minutes of the second period as UW-Superior went on a 4-0 burst.  Reinertsen banged home a "3" from the top of the key at the 9:51 mark and a Norlin score in the paint off of an inbounds pass at the 9:09 mark made it a 33-12 game before the Auggies could make a dent on lay-ups by McLemore at the 8:37 mark and Steinhaus at the 8:01 mark.  Surprising freshman reserve forward Abby Jordan connected with a lay-up in transition at the 6:59 mark but Augsburg needed more than just a 6-0 run to get their teeth back into this game.  Indeed, the Yellowjackets responded with a 6-0 burst of their own.  Two scores by junior forward Bailee Bartunek - one in the paint at the 6:29 mark and a short jumper from the right side at the 5:18 mark - coupled with an offensive rebound and putback by Norlin with 4:50 left made it a 39-18 game and the Auggie's Riverso was once again clamoring for a timeout.  Augsburg seemed to find a bit of life after that stoppage in play as Wilson drained back-to-back treys - one from the top of the key with 4:33 left and another on the ensuing Auggie possession from the left top area with 3:58 left - that got the deficit looking a bit better trailing 39-24.  Bartunek would get the UW-Superior lead up to 41-24 with her lay-up off of an inbounds pass with 3:43 left but Augsburg was able to keep chipping away down the stretch before the half.  Jordan would drain a "3" from the right corner with 2:15 left and a lay-up in transition by Speese with 1:49 left cut the Yellowjacket lead down to 41-29.  A short shot off the glass by Kontny with 1:39 left got the lead back up to thirteen at 43-30 but a Wilson drive and finish off the glass with :56 left brought the score back down to 43-32 going into the locker room at the half - a damn sight better than what it was earlier in the period.  The big question now would become if the Auggies could sustain runs and, more importantly, get defensive stops which was proving to be hard to do with all the weapons at UW-Superior Head Coach Don Mulhern's disposal. And while the Yellowjackets were guilty of 13 turnovers in the first half, they pounded Augsburg on the boards by a 26-14 count.

UW-Superior got off to a decent enough start at the beginning of the third period as a jumper from the right wing by Kontny at the 9:15 mark and a short jumper in transition by Leger at the 8:55 mark increased the lead to 47-32.  The Auggies though seemed to come out with a renewed intensity; particularly on defense.  McLemore connected with a lay-up in transition at the 8:45 mark and junior reserve forward Bridget Bednar knocked down a jumper along the right baseline at the 8:02 mark that cut the Yellowjacket lead down to 47-36 and a Wubben lay-up at the 7:20 mark along with a pretty drive and finish by McLemore that drew a foul and sent the former Eagan standout to the charity stripe for the obligatory free throw at the 6:33 mark now gave Augsburg a reason for real hope trailing 51-41.  But getting the deficit back into single-digit range was proving to be a bridge too far at this point and UW-Superior shut the door on this Auggie comeback attempt.  Norlin got into the paint for one score at the 6:08 mark and a Reinertsen offensive rebound and putback at the 5:01 mark increased the lead to fourteen at 55-41.  Two Reinertsen free throws with 3:40 left and a score in the paint by 5'5" freshman reserve guard Megan Aho with 3:19 left increased the lead to 59-43.  Two more Reinertsen freebies with 2:01 left and a lay-up in transition by junior forward Justine Larson that drew a foul and sent the Stanchfield native to the line for the free throw now had the Yellowjackets in great shape again leading 64-47.  Augsburg would get two late scores before the end of the third period when Speese got into the paint for a score that drew a foul that resulted in the obligatory freebie with :37.5 left and a McLemore tip-in of a missed lay-up in transition by Wubben cut the UW-Superior lead back down to 64-52 but trying to make serious dents into the Yellowjacket cushion was proving to be a tough task for the Auggies.

That protective cauldron that the Yellowjackets had been enjoying from seemingly the get-go would soon dissipate as Augsburg again came out with a renewed determination.  A short jumper by Speese at the 9:40 mark again had the Auggies in that ten-point range again trailing 64-54 and then Wilson struck from three-point land from the right corner at the 9:11 mark that finally had Augsburg back in that single-digit striking range distance trailing 66-57.  A short shot after a steal by Norlin had UW-Superior back up by double-digits briefly at 68-57 but the Auggies continued with their onslaught. McLemore made good on a hard drive and finish that drew a foul at the 8:15 mark and, although McLemore couldn't sick the obligatory free throw, the Auggies got the offensive rebound and a "3" from the left top area by freshman reserve guard Arianna Jones at the 8:08 mark cut the Yellowjacket lead down to six at 68-62.  Wilson would sink one free throw after being fouled in a transition situation at the 7:39 mark and, although Kontny would get a lay-up for UW-Superior at the 7:26 mark to get the lead back up to seven at 70-63, Wilson; the former DeLaSalle standout, got another lay-up in transition after a steal that made it 70-65 at the 6:37 mark and Mulhern knew full and well that his Yellowjacket team was clearly rattled by this point and he called a timeout so his team could take a few breaths of fresh air and refocus.  A short jumper in the lane by Norlin at the 5:56 mark again got the lead to seven at 72-65 but Augsburg was just beginning to find its groove.  Speese made good on a daring drive into the paint for a finish at the 5:36 mark and two McLemore free throws at the 5:20 mark after she was fouled in transition after another Yellowjacket turnover now cut the UW-Superior lead down to a single possession at 72-69.  The Yellowjackets tried desperately to stave off this furious Augsburg comeback bid as free throws by Norlin at the 5:07 mark and one more with 4:07 left had the lead back up to four at 75-71.  Speese fouled out by this point and some of the Augsburg faithful within Si Melby Hall wondered if this comeback bid might have met its end.  But this young group out on the floor for the Auggies probably didn't feel any fear whatsoever.  Instead, they kept plugging away.  McLemore connected with a lay-up that brought Augsburg back to within a tantalizing single possession trailing 75-73 and, although Norlin would put UW-Superior up by four at 77-73 with her score in the paint with 3:36 left, the Yellowjackets could not find the answers on defense that would halt this athletic group of Auggie youngsters.  Wubben got into the paint for one score with 3:13 left and on the ensuing UW-Superior possession, Kontny had her pocket picked by McLemore who quickly got the ball to Wubben for a lay-up in transition that had the crowd in Si Melby Hall going nuts with the score tied at 77.

The Yellowjackets tried to restore order when Bartunek connected with a jumper from the right elbow with 2:33 left that gave UW-Superior the lead again at 79-77 but Mulhern's worst nightmare seemed to be coming true as two free throws by McLemore with 2:25 left knotted the score at 79 a piece and then a Wubben "3" from the right corner with 1:46 left brought down the house and gave the Auggies their first lead of the game at 82-79.  Kontny tried desperately to bring the Yellowjackets back with her lay-up in transition after a steal and, although she was fouled in the process, she couldn't sink the ensuing freebie and that allowed Augsburg to cling to an 82-81 advantage with :31.3 left.  Wubben was fouled on the ensuing Augsburg possession and her two free throws made it an 84-81 ballgame. Mulhern called a timeout and drew up a play and UW-Superior ran it to perfection.  With :07.8 left, Reinertson go open from behind the arc; received a pass from Aho from the right wing area and she drained a "3" that tied the score at 84-all.  Mulhern quickly called a thirty-second timeout to draw up defensive plans to try and thwart the ensuing Auggie possession.  But Riverso and his staff had their squad ready.  Steinhaus received the inbounds pass from the half-court line and with the Yellowjackets perhaps expecting the ball to go to either Wilson or McLemore, Steinhaus; the Waterville native, made an unexpected dash to the rack and she slyly finished in the paint underneath with :01.6 left that gave Augsburg an 86-84 lead.  Mulhern would call for one last stoppage in play to try and draw up something that might fly with such little time left.  But on the ensuing inbounds pass attempt, there was a miscommunication between Aho and her intended target and she inadvertently passed the ball out of bounds and the Auggies were able to burn off the last :01.6 to claim their second straight thriller.

A despondent Mulhern was at a loss for words when I caught up with him afterward.  He did express some displeasure with some of the officiating and a few calls here and there and it had to be frustrating to open the season with a heartbreaking loss to CSB at home by two points and then lose this one by two points in the fashion that they did after being in control for most of the contest. Mulhern would lament that "there were a lot little things we didn't do" but it was plain to see the disapppointment on his face.  On the other side, I asked an elated Riverso about how winning these two opening games (beating UW-Stout and now this one) in the fashion that they did would help the confidence of this young core group of players.  He said he wasn't sure but did say that they don't know much about the league (MIAC) save for the summer league play.  He also talked about how he feels this team is slowly carving an identity for itself.  "We're not just a transition team" he said; adding that "our defense is underrated."  Indeed, the Auggies forced 26 UW-Superior turnovers in this contest that led to many of the transition opportunities.  How good this team will be remains to be seen, of course, but this is a group that you'll definitely want to keep your eye on.  The Auggies were led in this one by McLemore's 23 points while Speese added 17 points and Wilson and Wubben chipped in with 14 and 13, respectively.  Kontny poured in 23 points to lead the way for the Yellowjackets and Norlin had a "double-double" on this night with her 21 points and ten rebounds.