Women's Basketball

Fast start leads third-seeded NDSU by sixth-seeded Denver

Press Conference: North Dakota State | Denver

The Basics
Score: No. 3 North Dakota State 79, No. 6 Denver 67
Records: North Dakota State (15-8), Denver (7-16)
Location: The Sanford Pentagon - Sioux Falls, S.D.

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – The number three was fitting for third-seeded North Dakota State in a 79-67 victory over sixth-seeded Denver in Sunday's second quarterfinal of The Summit League Women's Basketball Championship at the Sanford Pentagon. The Bison connected on 10 in the contest, including seven in the opening quarter as they built a double-digit lead on the Pioneers that they would not relinquish.

NDSU broke a 14-14 deadlock by closing the first quarter on an 11-0 run and never trailed again. Sophomore Heaven Hamling sparked that spurt with a 3-pointer and scored 12 of her team-high 16 points on a 4-for-5 effort from deep range in the opening 10 minutes. She paced a balanced scoring attack that helped send NDSU into the semifinal round for the second straight year.
 


NDSU led 40-25 at the break and Ryan Cobbins hit a pair of 3-pointers right away in the third quarter to end any thoughts of a DU comeback. Cobbins, who had just a free throw in the first half, sank a trio of 3-pointers after halftime and finished with 14 points.

All five Bison starters had at least eight points and10 different players contributed in the scoring column to help NDSU post its largest tournament-win in program history.

Meghan Boyd led Denver with 19 points and Uju Ezeudu added 16, but a dominant fourth quarter by the Pios that saw them outscore NDSU 27-14 was too late to pose a serious threat.   


NDSU will take on No. 2 South Dakota in Monday's second semifinal at 2:45 p.m. CT.

Turning Point
NDSU hit three consecutive triples to spark an 11-0 and break a 14-14 tie midway through the first quarter and .

Inside the Box Score

  • NDSU made seven first-quarter triples (12 att.) to build a 25-14 after 10 minutes, but attempted only one and missed it in the second quarter
  • Hamling finished with 16 points and has reached double figures in 17 of 23
  • The Bison turned DU's 10 first-half turnovers into 14 points as they led by as many as 18 before the break and 28 in the third quarter
  • Kadie Deaton added 11 points off the bench to give NDSU a trio of double-figure scorers

News & Notes

  • This was a rematch of a 2020 quarterfinal matchup that saw the sixth-seeded Bison knock off the third-seeded Pioneers 72-68
  • The Pioneers have lost six consecutive quarterfinal tilts since making the title game in 2014
  • These two split the regular-season series in Fargo with DU winning game one by two (62-60) and NDSU winning game two by 18 (74-56)
  • The Bison have now made back-to-back semifinal appearances after making it that far just once before in their initial tournament appearance in 2009

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