One of the last teams to get into the 32-team field, No.6 seed Northwestern College proved they belonged with an impressive 83-68 win over No.3 Southern Oregon in a first round match-up at the NAIA Division II Women's Basketball National Championship played this morning at the Tyson Events Center.
The Red Raiders advance to Friday's second round where they will play unbeaten No.2 seed Southeastern (Fla.) at 3:45pm. Northwestern earned its 20th win of the season, improving to 20-11, and run its record at the D-II Women's Basketball Championship to 45-8.
Down by two (65-63) with 5:54 left to play, two free throws by Kassidy De Jong began a 20-3 Northwestern run to close the game and send the 2016 national runner-ups home. De Jong scored seven during the decisive run, including a long three-pointer putting NWC up 77-65 at the 1:41 mark. Tenacious defense keyed the surge as the Red Raiders forced SOU into three turnovers and limited them to 1/7 shooting.
De Jong scored a game-high 29 points, flawless from the free-throw line in 10 attempts. She also pulled down eight rebounds and dished out two asssists. Both Anna Kiel and Renee Maneman scored 15 with Kiel nabbing a team-leading nine rebounds. Maneman was outstanding directing the Red Raiders offense, dishing out six assists against constant pressure from SOU.
The first half was a back-and-forth, high scoring 20 minutes that featured four ties and seven lead changes. Southern Oregon closed with a 12-4 run to take the largest lead by either team, 44-38, by the conclusion of the first half.
Paige Danner scored on a jumper in the lane to cap an 8-0 run that brought Northwestern back in front, 46-44. The rest of the quarter was tight with the Red Raiders holding the advantage 58-55 by the end.
Northwestern, one of the top shooting team's in the NAIA, shot 57% from the field, 38% (6/16) from the arc. They made 25-of-28 free throw attempts (89%).
After shooting 53% in the first quarter, Southern Oregon cooled off to 36% for the game. Toria Bradford led the Raiders with 21 points, followed by Majerle Reeves with 17. SOU ends the year at 27-5.
Other Notes:
Renee Maneman drained a half-court shot just ahead of the horn to end the first quarter
Northwestern held a commanding 43-26 advantage on the boards
Northwestern continues to be the all-time leader with 45 wins at the D-II Championship
De Jong passed Miranda Boekhout (2005-08), JJ Korver (1989-93) and Pat Karels (1980-84) and into 28th place all-time with 1,037 career points
Maneman moved into 40th place in career rebounds (409), passing Kerri Clark (1989-91)
