MIAC Championship Game - Augsburg vs UST 2-23-19

Got over to the St. Paul side of town and Schoenecker Arena on the campus of UST on this overcast, gloomy Saturday afternoon as many here in the upper Midwest braced for Winter Storm Quiana's wrath to take in the highly-anticipated MIAC Championship Game between visiting Augsburg on the Minneapolis side of town and host UST.  I got inside Schoenecker Arena early to get settled in to watch both teams warm-up.  We saw the Tommies sweep the Auggies during the regular season so I don't think it was a shock to most to understand that UST would be the decided favorite again in this particular setting.  At the same time, we also know how incredibly difficult it is to beat a team (any team for that matter) three times in one season and certainly Augsburg Head Coach Ted Riverso and his staff had presumably made even more tweaks for this game.  And one thing that the Auggies had going for them on this day was that a large contingent of fans and students had made the short trek over from the Minneapolis side of town to cheer on their beloved Augsburg.  Of course, the third-ranked Tommies were prepared as well and they were well-represented on this day too with parents, students/alumni and former Tommie players in the stands as well so it was going to be a fun atmosphere for this one. 

Defense took center stage after the opening tip but UST still managed to bolt out to a 5-1 advantage in the first four minutes of the opening period as sophomore guard/forward Kaia Porter connected with a lay-up at the 7:38 mark that also drew a foul with the obligatory free throw to follow.  Senior All-American post Hannah Spaulding was able to get a tip-in of her own miss in traffic at the 5:43 mark to achieve that four-point edge before the Auggies could reduce the deficit to two points on a lay-up by junior forward Camryn Speese at the 5:22 mark.  The Tommies, however, responded with a 6-0 push to try and open up some more space early on.  A routine Spaulding score in the paint at the 5:12 mark and a drive and finish by Porter with 4:41 left got UST's lead up to 9-3 and still another Spaulding score down low with 4:00 left pushed the lead to 11-3 before the Auggies could make some dents in this early cushion thanks to freshman reserve forward Jen Masello.  The Darien, IL product got one score in the paint with 3:42 left and also connected with a lay-up with 1:16 left that reduced the deficit to five points at 12-7 but the Tommies would build the lead back up to eight points again before this first period expired.  Ever-improving freshman reserve guard Mia Krogseng made a drive for a finish with :58 left and one Spaulding freebie after she was fouled with :28.7 left had UST up 15-7 and clearly Augsburg was in a tough spot already as things moved into the second period.

But one thing that has defined this Augsburg team all year long was how explosive they can be at times on offense and their ability to strike like an agitated rattlesnake at times.  That was demonstrated on Thursday night in their comeback win against Bethel and it was demonstrated again in the early moments of the second period as junior guard Tamira McLemore banged home one "3" from the top of the key at the 7:07 mark and fellow junior point guard Ari Jones drained another "3" from the left wing area at the 6:26 mark that suddenly had the Auggies back to within a single possession down 15-13.  Two free throws by senior guard Camille McCoy at the 5:19 mark reduced the deficit down to one point at 16-15 before UST could get a bit more breathing room on two Spaulding charity stripe shots with 4:25 left.  But one thing that has always worried Tommie Head Coach Ruth Sinn is an opponent's ability to hit three-point shots and that fear was probably renewed when Augsburg's McLemore unleashed yet another three-point bomb - this one from the right wing area with 3:57 left that had the raucous Auggie contingent roaring and, more importantly, had this one knotted at 18 a piece.  Again the Tommies managed to step on the gas pedal as two lay-ups in transition by Spaulding - one with 3:46 left and another one with 3:18 left - had UST up by four at 22-18.  The momentary exhiliration that the Augsburg contingent felt just a bit ago took a hit a bit later when McLemore collected her second foul of the afternoon with 2:28 left and UST sophomore reserve guard Kelsie Cox got two free throws out of it to push the Tommie lead to five at 24-19.  But hopes were high again for the Auggies as Masello got to the charity stripe after getting fouled with 2:12 left and she responded with both attempts to reduce the deficit to three points at 24-21 and then up-and-coming sophomore reserve guard Nicole Zielsdorf came up big for Augsburg as she nailed a "3" from the right wing area with 1:12 left that again tied this game at 24-all.  But the Tommies were able to end this second period with a 5-1 spurt as another Spaulding score in the paint with :57 left had UST up again 26-24 and with just :04 left, senior guard Kaylie Brazil came up big for the Tommies as she unleashed a dagger "3" from the right top area to give UST some breathing room again - and a 29-25 lead to take into the locker room at the half to boot.  A check of the first half box score reveals something of a glass half-full proposition for both teams.  On the UST side, they did have a sizable edge on the boards 24-15 and had only three turnovers to Augsburg's eight but on the downside, Sinn and her staff had to be in utter shock to see that the Tommies had an absolute dismal performance from three-point land; landing only 1-9 attempts.  Augsburg on the other hand shot decently from behind the arc; going 4-8 for a straight 50% but that was brought down by the fact that they were only 7-21 from FG range for 33.3%.  Free throw shooting was okay as they were 7-10 from the charity stripe but those eight first half turnovers they committed along with the aforementioned rebounding aspect took some of that impact away. 

The Auggies though managed to stay right in the thick of things and, at one point anyway, appeared to have momentum clearly in their favor in the opening minutes of the third period.  Speese made a drive into the lane for a jumper at the 9:46 mark to reduce the deficit to two points at 29-27 and then McLemore got Augsburg even closer when she drained yet another three-point bomb - this one from the left wing area at the 9:01 mark that reduced the deficit to a scant point at 31-30.  One free throw by McCoy at the 8:34 mark and one more by junior guard Kaezha Wubben at the 7:52 mark kept the Auggies in that one-point range down 33-32.  By this time, UST senior guard Lucia Renikoff had collected her third foul of the afternoon and at the 7:10 mark, perhaps the pivotal point of this ballgame took place when Augsburg got into the bonus after McLemore was fouled and her two free throws had the Auggies in single possession range down only 35-33 and, presumably anyway, this is where everything was laid out perfectly for Augsburg to possibly usurp control of this game if they could just play defense and make a concerted effort to drive the ball into the lane in hopes of getting several trips to the charity stripe.  Strangely, however, this never happened and the Tommies had a big part in that as they adjusted and stretched out their lead again.  Sophomore reserve guard Macy Hatlestad unleashed a dagger "3" from the right corner at the 6:56 mark to get UST's lead to five points at 38-33 and then Porter unleashed a three-point dagger of her own at the 5:15 mark from the right top area that pushed the lead to eight points at 41-33.  Brazil completed this key 9-0 run with her jumper from the left elbow area with 4:20 left that now gave the Tommies a ten-point cushion at 43-33; certainly not an insurmountable deficit from an Augsburg standpoint but the seeming momentum they had just a short while ago seemed to escape into this dreary winter afternoon.  The Auggies attempted to cut into this cushion as Masello made a drive for a lay-up with 3:05 left and another three-point bomb by McLemore - this one from the right wing area with 2:24 left - reduced the deficit to seven points at 45-38.  But Augsburg would never see the daylight of possibly being able to poke their nose out in front again.  Tommie junior guard Sarah Krynski muscled into the paint for a score with 1:53 left as would Porter with 1:26 left to push the lead back to nine points at 49-40 and then Porter would make a drive into the lane for a finish with :46 left as the shot clock was expiring to once again get the lead to ten at 51-41.  The Auggies would manage to resuscitate their fading hopes as two Wubben free throws with :33.8 left and a McLemore drive and finish with :14 left reduced the deficit to six points at 51-45.  UST's Porter got tagged with her fourth foul of the day with just :04 left that bolstered hope again on the Augsburg side but the Auggies still had an uphill climb down 51-45 going into the fourth period. 

Augsburg tried desperately to keep this one within striking distance once the fourth period got underway but it seemed like the basketball version of the "I Love Lucy" episode when she struggles to keep up with the conveyor belt of chocolates coming her way that eventually overwhelms her.  UST's Renikoff; who struggled with her shooting touch throughout most of this game, came alive in the fourth period and she unleashed one of her trademark "3's" at the 9:47 mark to get the lead to nine points at 54-45.  The Auggies tried to answer as Wubben was able to grab an offensive rebound of her own three-point miss at the 9:21 mark for a putback  and a McLemore jumper from the right wing area at the 7:54 mark reduced the deficit to seven points at 56-49 to provide at least a ray of hope going forward.  But that hope soon died a quick death as the Tommies' Renikoff soon stretched things out again for her team.  The former Minneapolis Washburn standout drained her second trey of the day from the left wing area at the 7:02 mark and added one free throw after getting fouled at the 5:45 mark to get UST's lead to eleven at 60-49.  A Krynski score in the paint at the 5:24 mark and a Porter jumper from the free throw line with 4:47 left now had the Tommie lead at thirteen points at 64-51 and Augsburg's Riverso clearly saw this one slipping away for good from his team and he quickly called a timeout in hopes of reversing this trend.  But it simply was not to be on this day as the Auggies' best chance had since come and gone.  One free throw by UST's Spaulding with 2:33 left and two more by Renikoff with 2:06 left now had the Tommies up 67-51 and a Brazil jumper from the free throw line with :56 left got the lead to eighteen at 69-51.  Augsburg's Jones got one three-point bomb to fall from the left top area with :38 left but it was simply too little, too late.  Pairs of insurance free throws by UST's Porter with :30.4 left and by Brazil with :25.8 left only added to the pad and the Tommies collected their eighth consecutive MIAC Championship Game trophy with a 73-54 victory and the MIAC's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament as well.

It took me a while before I could catch up with anyone afterward and, as Prince's "Purple Rain" cascaded through Schoenecker Arena as the Tommies prepared to cut down the nets once again, it struck me just how incredibly good this UST team truly is.  They absorbed Augsburg's best effort and shook it off just when the Auggies seemed to be in position to put the Tommies in a tough spot in that third period.  I finally did catch up with Augsburg Assistant Coach Jackie Voigt and asked her about that critical moment in the third period when the Auggies got into the bonus but never could capitalize on that opportunity.  "We just didn't score" she deadpanned.  I think you can probably make the argument too that the Auggies shot selection after that opportunity had come and gone was a bit questionable as well but UST is all too well known for making its opponents take bad shots at critical times.  The good news for Augsburg is that they can lick their wounds for the next 36-48 hours as they prepare for selection Monday to find out where they're going in the NCAA Tournament and, if I had to offer up a guess right now, I'm betting that they'll get sent down to Waverly, IA for the pod at ARC champ Wartburg (more on that later).  I asked UST's Sinn about how her team was potentially in a tough spot in that third period when the Auggies got into the bonus.  "It's like I've told you at the beginning of the year.....The officials aren't going to change....We have to adjust."  And I think the Tommies did a great job of that as that's exactly where they started to get some much desired separation and they completed the deal in the fourth period.  Sinn was quick to praise Augsburg's McLemore as well.  "She's just an outstanding player" she said.  So now the Tommies can sit back and wait for Monday's Selection Show to see who's all going to be making their way to Schoenecker Arena for next Friday night's first round games.  A show of the final box score shows that UST walloped Augsburg on the boards by a 43-27 count and while I expected the Tommies to win this particular battle, I felt that the Auggies had to do a better job here and it just didn't happen.  Neither team was terrible on the turnover front today with the Tommies committing 11 and Augsburg 14 but the Auggies only got one steal all game long and they had to get more to spark their up-tempo game which simply never happened on this day.  But here's an even more shocking stat that stood out to me:  In that fourth period, UST really applied the clamps to the Auggies on defense which resulted in Augsburg going only 3-17 from FG range for 17.6% and 1-8 from downtown for 12.5%.  Yikes.  Now, UST finished this game going 25-53 from FG range for 47.2% and only 5-17 from behind the arc for 29.4%.  Perhaps the biggest concern for Sinn and her staff is that the Tommies were 18-29 from the charity stripe on this day for 62.1% and that number will have to come up for the NCAA Tournament.  Just another spectacular outing for Spaulding on this day with her "double-double" of 25 points to lead all scorers along with 17 rebounds to boot.  Porter had another solid outing with 16 points and Renikoff; who started slowly on this day, came alive late when her team needed her most and she finished with ten points.  McLemore led the Augsburg effort with her 19 points and she was the only Auggie in double figures scoring-wise on this day.