Herald Staff Writer
BROOKINGS, S.D. -- It took 24 games, a few team meetings and some soul searching, but UND finally found what it was looking for during Saturday night's 98-71 North Central Conference women's basketball win over South Dakota State.
The Sioux rediscovered the style of play that carried them to the last three NCAA Division II national titles.
UND's win came over a team that throttled league-leading North Dakota State a night earlier.
Has UND played as well this season as it did over the weekend in back-to-back wins over Augustana and SDSU?
"Honestly, I can't remember a better weekend," said UND's Jenny Hoffner. "Maybe we played that way against Morningside and South Dakota. But you have to consider the competition.
"This was the best weekend we've had for playing 40 minutes of Sioux basketball each game. It was fun."
UND's 73 percent shooting staked the Sioux (13-3 NCC, 22-4 overall) to a 27-14 lead in the first seven minutes. After the Jackrabbits climbed to within 42-38 at halftime, UND's 14-0 run -- which took only 2 1/2 minutes -- gave the Sioux a 66-46 lead with 11 minutes to play.
The run was sparked by the three-point shooting of Katie Richards and Jaime Pudenz plus the transition play of Theresa LeCuyer, who led all scorers with 25 points.
Pudenz was at the wheel of the blowout. She scored 14 points, grabbed five rebounds and finished with 11 assists.
Pudenz has had some of her more memorable games at Frost Arena. As a freshman, she scored 44 points in another Sioux blowout win.
"I just like the atmosphere here," Pudenz said. "They have crazy, hard-core fans. It's great place to play basketball. You don't get that everywhere you go."
SDSU played its fourth straight game without head coach Nancy Neiber, who is sidelined with health problems. The Jackrabbits, led by Mandy Koupal's 16 points, were coming off an emotional win over NDSU a night earlier.
They stayed with the Sioux for the first half, shooting 53 percent. "In the second half, we just didn't answer the bell," said Aaron Johnston, SDSU's assistant coach.
The Sioux answered the bell the entire weekend. They made 12 of 22 three-pointers at Augustana and were 12-of-23 against the Jackrabbits. Their transition game was in high gear; their defense was solid; and they were balanced offensively.
Richards (22 points) and Hoffner (15) joined LeCuyer and Pudenz as double-figure scorers.
"Maybe we matured a little as a team," UND coach Gene Roebuck said. "Katie and Jaime have shown great leadership. Down the stretch, they know what it takes. Their confidence rubs off on other players."
The Sioux enter the final week of the NCC season one game behind NDSU. Also, they did nothing to shake their second-place standing in the all-important North Central Region rankings, which determine the six-team playoff field.
"We're coming together at the right time," Pudenz said. "We're almost right where we need to be."
| UND (98) | |||
| Name | FG | FT | Points |
| Pudenz | 5-15 | 0-0 | 14 |
| Jones | 1-3 | 3-4 | 5 |
| Hoffner | 5-7 | 2-2 | 15 |
| Richards | 8-12 | 2-2 | 22 |
| Arndtson | 2-4 | 1-2 | 5 |
| LeCuyer | 10-12 | 4-4 | 25 |
| Boll | 2-4 | 2-2 | 6 |
| Palbicki | 2-4 | 2-2 | 6 |
| Totals | 35-61 | 16-18 | 98 |
| South Dakota St. (71) | |||
| Brende | 4-6 | 6-6 | 14 |
| Loken | 2-4 | 0-0 | 4 |
| Koupal | 6-9 | 4-7 | 16 |
| Sylvester | 3-9 | 1-2 | 8 |
| Greiner | 5-8 | 1-2 | 12 |
| Olson | 1-9 | 0-0 | 2 |
| Pater | 4-5 | 0-1 | 8 |
| Rippke | 3-5 | 0-0 | 6 |
| Nelson | 0-0 | 1-2 | 1 |
| Totals | 28-57 | 13-20 | 71 |
Halftime: UND 42, SDSU 38.
3-point goals: UND 12-23 (LeCuyer 1-1, Richards 4-5, Pudenz 4-10, Hoffner 3-5, Arndtson 0-2), SDSU 2-13 (Sylvester 1-5, Greiner 1-2, Brende 0-2, Johnson 0-1, Olson 0-3).
Rebounds: UND 31 (Richards 6, Boll 6), SDSU 30 (Koupal 5, Greiner 5).
Assists: UND 28 (Pudenz 11), SDSU 17 (Sylvester 7).
Total fouls: UND 19, SDSU 19.