By Wayne Nelson
Herald Staff Writer
FARGO -- The streak may be over, but UND's stranglehold on the North Central Conference remains.
UND's two-season, 46-game winning streak -- the ninth longest in NCAA history -- came to an end here Saturday night as rival North Dakota State used a dominating inside game and solid free-shooting to beat the No. 1-ranked Sioux 87-83 before 6,549 fans at the Bison Sports Arena.
The Sioux, two-time defending NCAA Division II women's basketball champions, had not lost since a 76-72 setback at Michigan Tech in November of 1997.
"If everyone thinks this is the end of the world, it isn't," UND coach Gene Roebuck said. "Monday will be another day of practice. And if we put this loss in the right perspective, it will make us a better basketball team."
The Sioux dropped to 9-1 in the NCC and 18-1 overall. However, UND still holds a two-game lead over the Bison, South Dakota State and Northern Colorado with eight to play.
The loss, however, didn't leave the Sioux stunned."It was more of a wake-up call,"said UND's Katie Richards, who led the Sioux with 29 points."We didn't care about the 46-game streak. We want to get back to the national tournament. Right now, we're worried about our next games. Maybe this loss will kick us in the butt."
North Dakota State, however, had a big stake in stopping UND's streak. The Bison, reeling from back-to-back road losses the week before, needed a victory to stay in the NCC race and also wanted to make sure UND would not break NDSU's 49-game winning streak from 1994-95 -- the NCAA Division II record.
"They were getting close to our record,"NDSU coach Amy Ruley said."We wanted to keep it."
But the Bison almost lost their chance to stay in the NCC race late in the first half. And that came as a surprise after NDSU opened a 43-26 lead with 4:48 left in the first half. The play of inside players Jayne Even (31 points) and Jayne Boeddeker (15 points, 11 rebounds) had the Sioux reeling.
But the Sioux, finally unleashing their transition game, finished the half on a 20-5 run and trailed 48-46 at the break.
"We were on a roll the last four minutes,"Richards said."But it was lucky for them that halftime came because when we get on a roll like that, it's tough to stop us. But we came out with no emotion in the second half.
"You have to give the Bison credit. They played a great game."
UND, which allowed NDSU to go on a 13-2 run to start the second half, lost, in part, because its defense couldn't stop the fluid play of front-line players Even, Boeddeker and Jaime Berry (13). The Sioux also were outrebounded 50-45 and allowed a whopping 29 Bison offensive boards, many that resulted in easy NDSU baskets.
And the Sioux sent the Bison to the free-throw line 44 times. The Bison made 36 compared to UND's 18-of-24 showing. The high number of NDSU free throws also meant that the Sioux spent most of the game in foul trouble.
Jenny Crouse (26) played only 19 minutes because of fouls. Also, Jaime Pudenz, Tonia Jones and Kami Winger all fouled out as the Bison maintained a relatively safe lead for much of the second half.
However, four straight missed NDSU free throws gave UND one last chance in the final minute. Richards' three free throws with 46 seconds cut NDSU's lead to 80-78. But Even then hit four straight from the line in the final 25 seconds.
The win gives NDSU and others hope in the NCC.
It also means the No. 9-ranked Bison are back in the big picture, the one that is focused on the Elite Eight national tournament in Pine Bluff, Ark.
"Don't overlook us,"said Even, who tied her career high point total."We lost two last weekend, but this shows we won't back down from anyone. UND still is a great team, but this is a great confidence boost for us."
And Richards wants to make sure UND remains a great team.
"From now on, we're going to come out more intense,"Richards said."We want to get back the feeling that teams are scared of the Sioux."
UND (18-1, 9-1 NCC): Pudenz 3-13 0-0 7, Jones 2-4 0-0 4, Hoffner 1-4 1-2 4, Winger 3-7 1-3 7, Super 0-2 2-2 2, Carroll 2-3 0-0 4, Richards 8-15 8-10 29, Crouse 10-17 6-7 26. Totals 29-65 18-24 83.
NDSU (16-3, 7-3): Burns 1-5 4-6 6, Reif 2-5 2-2 6, Amundson 1-6 2-4 4, Gehrke 2-4 0-0 4, Boeddeker 4-16 7-8 15, Stefonwoicz 1-5 6-6 8, Ulstad 0-0 0-0 0, Berry 5-13 3-3 13, Even 9-16 12-15 31. Totals 25-70 36-44 87.
Halftime: NDSU 48, UND 46. 3-point goals: UND 7-19 (Pudenz 1-5, Hoffner 1-4, Super 0-2, Richards 5-8), NDSU 1-5 (Even 1-2, Berry 0-3). Fouled out: Pudenz, Jones, Crouse, Winger. Rebounds: UND 45 (Winger 12), NDSU 50 (Boeddeker 11). Assists: UND 25 (Pudenz 9), NDSU 11 (Amundson 3). Total fouls: UND 30, NDSU 21. Turnovers: UND 20 (Winger 5), NDSU 14 (Gehrke, Even 3). A-6,549.