Settled on the Sioux Falls vs Concordia St Paul game on this Friday night to check out and was curious as to how the Golden Bears would respond after suffering their first loss of the season last Saturday to Augustana to come away with a split. Sioux Falls meanwhile was coming into this game rolling right along at 4-0 so this roadie over to the Twin Cities would arguably be a test for them.
Things would stay reasonably tight in the opening minutes of the first period as a score in the paint by senior forward and former Elk River standout Sidney Wentland and a lay-up by fellow senior guard and former Park Center standout Danielle Schaub had Concordia St Paul right in the thick of things down only 6-4 by the 8:05 mark. But the Cougars would provide a preview of things to come as they were able to establish a bit of breathing room thanks to a three-point bomb by senior Emily Peterson to help forge an 11-6 advantage by the 7:15 mark. Still, the Golden Bears were able to get back to within a single possession when lanky freshman forward Lindsey Becher knocked down a pair of free throws after getting fouled at the 6:58 mark. Sioux Falls would again get some more breathing space with a seven-point advantage at 15-8 when junior forward and former Lakeville North standout Kiara James connected with a lay-up at the 6:20 mark but things looked a lot better for the home team in the course of a minute as the Golden Bears embarked on a 5-0 push. Wentland would connect with a short jumper at the 6:05 mark and would follow that up with a big three-point bomb at the 5:25 mark to tighten things up down only 15-13 and by this point it certainly seemed like Concordia St Paul was right where they wanted to be. It was here, however, where the Cougars unleashed the first of their many three-point daggers in this contest. Peterson would comply with back-to-back bombs - one at the 5:13 mark and again with 4:30 left - that suddenly had Sioux Falls up by eight at 21-13. A lay-up in transition by junior forward Krystal Carlson with 1:48 left maintained the eight-point edge at 23-15 and another one by willowy junior guard Anna Brecht with :54 left gave the Cougars their first double-digit lead at 25-15. Junior guard Dallie Hoskinson would add a pair of charity stripe shots after getting fouled with :28 left but the cap on this first big run by Sioux Falls came with just one tick left on the clock in this opening period when senior guard Lauren Sanders banged home a back-breaking "3" from the top of the key as the Cougars took a sizable 30-15 lead going into the second period.
Things definitely appeared bleak for the Concordia St Paul faithful as Sioux Falls was able to slowly grow its lead once the second period got underway. A Hoskinson jumper at the 9:25 mark along with a pair of free throws by senior forward Anna Goodhope at the 8:21 mark had the Cougars up 34-18 and then Brecht would drain a "3" at the 7:42 mark for a 37-18 lead. A Hoskinson lay-up at the 6:54 mark made it a 39-20 game and two Brecht free throws at the 6:13 mark would make it 41-20 and it certainly seemed like Concordia St Paul was facing sure Armageddon at this point. To their credit, however, the Golden Bears refused to roll over and instead put together a push that tightened up things. Junior guard Meghan DuBois would connect with a jumper at the 5:13 mark and a score in the paint by junior guard/forward Sydney Schultz with 4:26 left initially led this charge. Sophomore forward Sydney Zgutowicz gave Concordia St Paul a much-needed spark with her three-point bomb with 3:57 left and a score in the paint by senior guard Riley Wheatcraft with 3:25 left and two Becher freebies with 2:33 left had the deficit down to sixteen at 47-31. Becher would also add a lay-up with 1:55 left and two free throws by sophomore guard Jadyn Hanson with 1:07 left now had the deficit down to twelve at 47-35 and there was every reason to think that the Golden Bears might possibly slice some more fat off of this deficit. But some of the defensive woes that were becoming readily apparent for this Concordia St Paul team reared their ugly heads again in the final minute as Sioux Falls re-established some breathing space. Sanders would casually drain a cruel "3" after being left alone in the left wing area and Goodhope would add a score in the paint just before the halftime buzzer as the Cougars took a cozy 52-37 lead into the locker room at the half.
Sioux Falls wasted little time in rebuilding that twenty-point cushion they had earlier once the third period got underway. One Brecht free throw at the 9:06 mark and a Hoskinson lay-up at the 8:50 mark made it 57-37 and junior guard Hannah Jones would add a lay-up at the 7:58 mark to make it 59-39. The Golden Bears were arguably in a funk on the offensive end and although Sioux Falls had cooled off a big from behind the arc, they were still finding other ways to pad their lead. Brecht would add a pair of free throws at the 6:15 mark and a Hoskinson jumper at the 4:15 mark now had the Cougars up 63-40. Hoskinson would add a lay-up with 3:38 left and a short jumper by Jones in transition with :45 left that drew a foul with the obligatory "and one" gave Sioux Falls its biggest lead of the evening at 68-42 with :45 left.
With things pretty much academic once the fourth period got underway, Sioux Falls still looked pretty efficient on both ends of the floor. Pairs of free throws by Jones - at the 9:13 and 8:20 marks - had the Cougars safely up 72-46 before Concordia St Paul finally started showing some signs of life again on the offensive end. Freshman guard Sarah Kuma out of Lakeville North knocked down a pair of free throws at the 8:09 mark and would add a three-point bomb at the 7:45 mark and a Zgutowicz lay-up at the 7:07 mark finally had the Golden Bears back to within twenty again down 72-53. Zgutowicz would add a lay-up in transition at the 5:56 mark and two Wheatcraft free throws at the 5:09 mark had the deficit down to seventeen at 74-57. But again, this was way too little, way too late - as was emphasized when Sioux Falls' Sanders buried another "3" with 4:22 left to make it a 77-57 game. Jones would add a pair of free throws with 3:43 left to maintain the twenty-point cushion at 79-59 and sophomore guard Ashley Wells would add a jumper for insurance with 1:35 left as the Cougars pocketed an important 83-65 road win.
It's true that you don't get the same perspective watching a game online as you would watching it in person with a good look at the floor and what's going on out there. Yet, the one thing that became readily apparent is how Sioux Falls basically got carte blanche in the first half to unleash their three-point artillery barrage that buried this Concordia St Paul team. Indeed, in the first half alone, the Cougars were 9-14 from behind the arc for 64.3% and you've just got to find a way to choke that off. Throw in some rather cold shooting by the Golden Bears as they went 13-30 from FG range in the first half alone and its easy to see how they quickly got themselves into some rather hot water. It was a very balanced attack for Sioux Falls with four players in double-figures. Brecht led the way for the Cougars and also led all scorers on this night with her 20 points while Jones had 13 points. Hoskinson had an incredibly solid night with her "double-double" of 12 points and 12 rebounds while Goodhope added 10 points. Concordia St Paul leaned heavily on Becher on this night as she led the Golden Bears with 13 points while Wheatcraft finished with 11 points.
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