Fayette, Mo. – The Dakota Wesleyan women's basketball squad picks up the blowout 85-56 win in the first round of the NAIA National Championship Tournament against (RV) Hope International University. The Tigers did it with big efforts from Isabel Ihnen scoring 18, Matti Reiner with 17, Morgan Edelman with 17 as well and Jada Campbell recording a double-double with grabbing a season-high 15 rebounds. The Tigers dominated on both ends of the court and really turned the tables halfway through the second quarter going on a 39-6 run to the 2:17 mark in the third quarter. DWU won the second half by a 50-25 margin. DWU advances to the second round to either face host CMU or Haskell at 7:00 p.m.
Stat Leaders:
Points – Isabel Ihnen (18)
Assists – Matti Reiner & Morgan Edelman (5)
Rebounds – Jada Campbell (15) Season High
Blocks – Jada Campbell (1)
Steals –Six Players (1)
Recap –
The first three minutes of the game had the Tigers jumping out to an 6-2 lead, getting buckets from Campbell, Rosenquist and Edelman. Dakota Wesleyan stayed true to their brand of basketball they have played all year, working the ball around, running the sets and finding the best quality shot. The Royals answered back to tie it at eight taking advantage of second chance points due to the Tigers not boxing out on defensive rebounds. Christensen continued to sub keeping fresh legs on the court, a strategy he used frequently during the season. DWU tightened up the defense like they have all season forcing four Hope International turnovers while on the offensive end going on a 6-0 run to take a 14-8 lead with 3:25 left. With two evenly matched teams it looked like early it was going to be the battle of the runs, with HIU answering with a 7-0 run of their own to take the lead. The Royals again were grabbing offensive rebound after rebound and cashing in on second chance points. To close the quarter both teams went bucket for bucket but with the Tigers holding a slim 16-15 lead heading to the second quarter.
In the first three minutes of the second quarter Hope International jumped out to a seven-point lead. They poured in two deep range shots and, like in the first quarter, took advantage of second chance looks and points off turnovers. The Tigers were getting most of their offense from Edelman with strong drives and Campbell inside with her trademark pull up jumpers with a defender in the face. Both teams went bucket for bucket keeping it at a HIU seven point lead halfway through the quarter. Dakota Wesleyan, being an experienced staff and roster knew the assignment and not letting the moment or deficit affect their game and began to chip away at the Royals lead. DWU did it with an aggressive strong dribble drive from Rosenquist who missed the initial layup but grabbed her own board and put it back getting the bench and crowd up and fired up. Dakota Wesleyan then got back-to-back three pointers from Ihnen and Reiner to cut the Hope International lead to just one. With that second three-pointer from Reiner the Tigers would close the quarter on an 8-0 run to reclaim the lead 35-31 going to half capped off on another Ihnen three, who you do not want to let get hot if you are Hope International. DWU cleaned up finding a body on defensive rebounds and boxing out by not allowing an offensive rebound in the last eight minutes of the second quarter. DWU shot 38.9% from the floor compared to HIU 37.5% while also winning the rebound battle by a slim 23-20 margin.
The Tigers came out of the locker room locked in dominating the quarter 30-10. Dakota Wesleyan went on a monster 39-6 run from the 4:58 mark in the second quarter to the 2:17 mark in the third quarter. DWU was suffocating the Royals on the defensive end and forcing HIU into low percentage looks and one pass shot type of offensive sets. Meanwhile, on the Tigers offensive side of the court they were running set after set confusing the Royals of what was coming. Ihnen got hot from three, which is always a bad sign for the opposing team. The Tigers opened the third quarter with a 16-2 run thanks to good ball movement and working each set to it's design. The Royals facing a big deficit tried to get quick buckets on their end of the floor but weren't getting anything to fall and DWU made a halftime adjustment to limit the Royals on the offensive glass and not allow them second chance looks. The quarter was highlighted by a Reiner and one basket, flexing to the crowd which got the DWU faithful in the crowd to their feet. Dakota Wesleyan held a massive 65-41 lead going to the fourth. The Tigers won the fourth quarter 20-15, completing the sweep of winning every quarter in the matchup.
DWU shot 47.1% from the floor compared to HIU 30.8%. The Tigers had one of their best and most efficient games from beyond the arc, mostly thanks to Ihnen. DWU went 7-19 compared to the typically very good three point shooting Royals team only going 9-33 from beyond the arc. The Tigers racked up 17 assists, just above their season average and dominated the rebound battle 48-35.
Head-to-Head (Hope International)
- DWU is now 2-0 all-time against HIU with tonight's win.
- Dakota Wesleyan grabbed the win in the first matchup by a score of 86-81 back in December of 2013. DWU Associate Head Coach, Celeste Beck went off for 29 points in the win.
Up Next
- Dakota Wesleyan women's basketball now awaits the winner of Central Methodist University and Haskell University. The game will be played at 7:00 p.m. tomorrow at the same location.