ST. PAUL, Minn. - After knocking off the #1 team in the nation on Wednesday night, the Golden Bear women's basketball team now looks ahead to an NSIC/Sanford Health Basketball Tournament semifinal game against no. 4 Augustana College. The remainder of both the men's and women's conference tournament will be played on the campus of Winona State, the highest remaining seed in both tournaments. The Golden Bears take on the Vikings at 5:00 pm at McCown Gymnasium. View the game live at www.northernsun.tv - UPDATED TOURNAMENT BRACKET - VIEW COMPLETE RELEASE - View LIVE STATS
Semifinal Schedule
12:00 pm #2 Winona St. women vs. #6 St. Cloud St. women
2:30 pm #2 Winona St. men vs. #3 St. Cloud St. men
5:00 pm #4 Augustana women vs. #8 Concordia women
7:30 pm #4 Minnesota St. men vs. #8 Northern St. men
Ticket Information
Reserved Seat $10
Adult Gen Adm $8
Senior Gen Adm $6
Student Gen Adm $2
Children 5 and under are free
* Tickets go on sale at 8:00 am Friday. They can be purchased by visiting www.ticketalternative.com or by calling 1-877-725-8849.
* Saturday's games will be one session; one ticket will get you in for all games.
* The championship games are scheduled for Sunday, March 8 with the women's game at 2:00 pm and the men's game at 4:00 pm.
While the Golden Bears may remain the underdog with a no. 8 seed in the tournament, five straight wins and decisions in seven of their last eight games should give them the respect they deserve. History is also on Concordia's side, as the Golden Bears have captured NSIC Championship titles (regular or tournament) four out of the last five years. And the team has been playing much improved basketball over the past few weeks, with success cresting in their win over the Mavericks, where they set a new NSIC Tournament record with 13 three-pointers.
Concordia brings many weapons to the hardcourt. The team is led by senior forward Candace Olstad with 13.6 ppg. Olstad has gone into double figures 24 times this season and is a top rebounder with 6.2 boards per game. She also threatens from the outside, where she has hit 28 three-pointers on the year.
Junior forward Shandrell Duncan has been dominating the paint as well, averaging 11.5 points and 7.2 rebounds per game over the past six contests. She had a breakout game that helped lead the Golden Bears over the Mavericks, putting in 16 points and nabbing 15 rebounds, both career highs. Duncan also brings her shot blocking ability to the CU defense. She is third in the NSIC with 1.61 blocks per game and 50 on the season.
The Golden Bears have a variety of options with their guards. Zoraa Quoie brings an unrivaled quickness that has put her as the fourth-leading NSIC player for steals (78). Additionally, Quoie has emerged as the team's assist leader (143, 3rd NSIC) and has breakout scoring capabilities. Kali Olstad and Jamie Jones have made the Golden Bears the second best three-point threat in the conference with 71 and 55 triples hit each, respectively.
The Vikings are a team that is roughly similar to Concordia. They hit plenty of three-pointers (7.14/g) while also having the strength from two bigs down low. 6-0 forward Whitney Hofer has averaged 14.8 ppg for the Vikings. Her 8.6 rebounds per game (2nd NSIC) has helped the team stay out of the red on the boards. Guard Amy Puthoff is the top three-point weapon with 68 made this season. She is averaging 14.5 ppg and has also been a solid rebounder, tied for second on the team with 5.3 per game.
Augustana College has been very vulnerable as the NSIC Tournament approached. They lost four of their last five regular season games, but turned around from a 79-63 loss to Minnesota Duluth last weekend to knock the Bulldogs out 82-73 in the quarterfinals. The team's shooting has been particularly unreliable, especially from the Viking guards.
If their three-point shooting is once again on target, the Golden Bears should have a chance to make a difference from long range. Concordia's forwards will be matched by the good shot blocking capabilities of the Viking squad, but by hitting the offensive boards with a purpose, they may be able to get put-backs. The teams will battle for possessions as turnovers could spell the difference in the game. Concordia has been very strong defensively down the stretch and, if they can get the Vikings to put up another poor shooting performance, they have a shot at advancing to their third straight NSIC Tournament Championship game.
The last time the Vikings and Golden Bears met (BOX SCORE) in Sioux Falls on Jan. 30 when Augie snuck out a late 69-63 win. The teams shot similarly from the field but Augustana had a large 48-39 lead on the boards. The Golden Bears did a good job containing the Viking outside shot (1-15) to keep the score close. Megan Doyle had 23 points to lead Augie, while Candace Olstad and Zoraa Quoie topped Concordia's scoring with 19 and 17 points each, respectively. It was the only meeting between the teams this season.
