The Arena Auditorium roared with an applause that has been unmatched all year for the Cowgirls on Friday night as they completely dominated the South Dakota Coyotes in the Super 16 of the WNIT, winning 84-52.
“The [team] really competed, and they stuck with what was working, which was going inside. The crowd was great tonight, the atmosphere was awesome,” head coach Heather Ezell said.
The Cowgirls were extremely effective in their half court offense, getting whatever they wanted down in the paint as Allyson Fertig was dominant down low with a huge double-double performance with 24 points and 11 rebounds.
“At first, they didn’t bring the double and [Fertig] was able to make easy work of that. If you make a quick move, they can’t bring a double,” Ezell noted.
The Cowgirls’ interior dominance was highlighted by 54 of the Cowgirls 84 points coming from in the paint, outscoring the Coyotes down low by an incredible 34 points. The Cowgirls also made 20 more field goals than the Coyotes, as the Cowgirls’ defense locked down the Coyotes, holding them to just 27.3% from the field.
The game was back and forth to start, as South Dakota was putting up a fight early in the Dome of Doom. A Coyote three pointer would make the game 12-9 midway through the first quarter Malene Pederson would have a quick answer, splashing in her first three as Emily Mellema would compliment that three with one of her own to quickly make it a 20-11 game for the Cowgirls. The Coyotes would attempt to battle back, but two straight buckets for Marta Savic down low would make it 24-13 after one quarter of play.
Fertig was active early in the second quarter, scoring two quick baskets but another Coyote three would cut the Cowgirl lead to 28-18. The Cowgirls would push back, but again the Coyotes would answer, cutting the lead to single digits at 32-23 late in the second quarter. The Cowgirls wouldn’t let that lead slip any further, as they’d answer with a quick 9-0 in the last 1:45, giving the Cowgirls a 41-23 lead heading into the locker room.
The Cowgirls would face some pressure early in the third quarter, as the Coyotes would attempt to rush the Cowgirls and force turnovers to get back into the game. The Cowgirls would handle the pressure and then some, as their lead would quickly balloon to 21. The Coyotes would continue to fight, but a Kati Ollilainen three that just beat the shot clock towards the end of the half would seemingly put a dagger into the hopes of a Coyote come back as she and Fertig would give the Cowgirls a 63-40 lead heading into the final quarter of play.
The Coyotes wouldn’t be able to get any closer, as the Cowgirls would make it a 31 point lead off an 8-0 start to the final quarter. The Cowgirls would have an excellent final quarter, closing the game off with a 21-12 advantage to give them a dominant 84-52 victory over the Coyotes to advance to the Great 8 in the WNIT.
The Cowgirls enjoyed a balanced scoring effort that saw five different Cowgirls hit double figures, including Fertig’s double-double. Her center duo Marta Savic followed suit with a 14 point performance, as McKinley Dickerson, Mellema and Pederson followed with 12, 11 and 10 points respectively.
The Cowgirls will face off against Minnesota in the Great 8, with the game set to be played on Monday at 6:30 p.m. in the Arena-Auditorium.
“We’ve got the best fans in the country and I hope we can see them all again Monday night,” Ezell said.
