SUPERIOR, Wis. - North Central University women's basketball found themselves in the featured Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) game of the week for the second time this season as they traveled to take on the University of Wisconsin-Superior Yellowjackets (UWS). In a back and forth game that saw the Rams lead for nearly half of the contest, North Central showed once again that it is ready to take on the very best that the conference has to offer. Although the Rams lost by a final score of 51-63, the majority of the game saw North Central in command. Coach Brunner's squad was led by
Emily DiGiorgio with another double-double (18 pts, 10 reb).
Game Recap
The Rams found themselves in the hole early as UWS jumped out to a 21-13 lead in the first quarter of play. The Rams struggled with ball control during the period, coughing up seven turnovers to the Yellowjackets one. North Central wasn't deterred though and proceeded to take the second quarter in dramatic fashion, outscoring their opponents 22-8 on 9-14 shooting. With the great play, North Central found itself leading at the half 35-29. The first half lead was the first time in NCU history that North Central found itself leading the historically dominant Yellowjackets after an entire half of play. This dramatic growth under Head Coach
Paul Brunner is evident when comparing where the Rams were just three years ago when the team found itself down 50-22 at the half.
North Central wasn't done doing work as they came out in the third quarter with the same intensity on the defensive end. NCU's offense generated plenty of great looks at the basket, however, it seemed as if the Rams had a lid on the hoop as they only shot 2-10 on the quarter. After three, North Central found itself leading the home team by two points, 43-41. In the fourth, it was the hot shooting of UWS that finally caught the Rams, leading to a final score of 63-51 in favor of the defending regular season champs. In the game, North Central would shoot 20-53 (37%) from the field compared to UWS's 27-64 (42%) output. The Rams received major contributions from DiGiorgio,
Naomi Hagstrom (14 pts, 4 reb) and
Kadija Conteh (11 pts, 2 reb). Unfortunately, the turnover differential (20-11) was too much to overcome.
From the Bench
Head Coach
Paul Brunner stated, "Our team showed great effort and put themselves in a position to compete all the way through. We must take better care of the ball on each possession though if we are going to take the next step as a team."
Key Performers
Looking Ahead
North Central is back on the road Wednesday as they travel to Ashland, Wis. to take on Northland College in a UMAC matchup. The game is scheduled to tipoff at 7:15 p.m.
Media: For further information, contact
Mike Knipe at 612-343-3541 or email mjknipe@northcentral.edu.
