There are many different ways to win a basketball game; tonight, Northwestern used a dominant effort on the defensive end to defeat Midland, 60-36, in a GPAC quarterfinal played at the Bultman Center.
The win propels the Red Raiders into the conference semifinals where they will play fifth-ranked and No.3 seed Dakota Wesleyan on Saturday at 3pm. Northwestern improves to 26-3 on the year; the loss ends the season for Midland with a 15-14 record.
Trailing by two (24-22) at the half, Northwestern began the third quarter with a 7-2 run, taking the lead for good after a three-pointer by
Sammy Blum. The Red Raiders led by one (30-29) at the five minute mark when they closed on an 11-2 surge for a 41-31 advantage by the end of the third quarter.
Midland would get no closer than eight over the final 10 minutes as the Red Raiders limited the Warriors to five points and just one field goal in the final quarter. Northwestern outscored Midland 17-1 over the final 7-plus minutes to push the lead to 24 by the end.
Northwestern shot 35% for the game, 45% in the second half, and converted 7-of-20 three-pointers (35%), making all seven in the final 20 minutes.
Kassidy De Jong led Northwestern with 16 points, scoring in double figures for the 28th time this season.
Sammy Blum netted 13 points and Birks added nine points, four rebounds and two assists.
Scoring was hard to come by for both teams in the first half as Midland held a slim 8-7 advantage after the first quarter, holding Northwestern to just one field goal. The Red Raiders tied the game on three separate occasions in the second quarter but failed to take the lead as the Warriors scored four of the final six points for a 24-22 edge at the half.
Northwestern limited Midland to just 12 points in the second half and the Warriors shot a season-low 23% for the game. Lexis Haase was the only player to score in double figures with 13. Maddie Egr contributed eight points, 14 rebounds and three blocked shots. Midland held a 44-42 advantage on the boards for the game, outrebounding Northwestern by a +12 in the first half.
