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SMSU WOMEN’S BASKETBALL: Mustangs wrap nonconference play with 90-40 victory over North Central

Photo by Sam Thiel SMSU's Meleah Reinhart tries to drive past a North Central defender during their game on Tuesday. The Mustangs defeated the Rams 90-40.

MARSHALL – The Southwest Minnesota State University women’s basketball team had one final nonconference test Tuesday night before they start NSIC play next week, as SMSU squared off with North Central University.

The Mustangs passed in strong fashion, rolling by the Rams with a 90-40 victory for their third consecutive win to close out their nonconference schedule.

SMSU coach Tom Webb said he felt his team responded a lot better in the second half with their effort and energy and that it was a good way to get the season started with strong nonconference play.

“Everyone played hard; the first half defensively we kind of gave some things up we probably shouldn’t have and then the second half we played a lot better. The effort was different in the second half,” Webb said. “When you win three games in a row, it’s a good thing and a good start and now conference play is here and we should be feeling good and ready to go.”

Things were tight once again to start, as North Central held an early 4-2 lead before Meleah Reinhart connected on a 3-pointer to put the Mustangs back in front at 8-6 with six minutes to go in the first quarter.

Then SMSU’s offense gained rhythm, going on an 8-0 run to take its first double-digit lead of the night at 16-6. A pair of threes from Jenna Borchers and Erin Baxter quickly pushed the Mustangs’ lead to 25-9 before SMSU took a 27-11 lead heading into the second quarter.

After both teams traded points to start the second quarter, Reinhart would connect on a 3-pointer to make it 36-16 with 4:08 left in the first half. North Central cut into the deficit with a couple of 3-pointers of its own, but SMSU held onto its lead to take a 43-25 advantage into the locker rooms.

Despite holding a double-digit lead going into the second half, the Mustangs wanted to get a recharged level of energy on both ends of the floor. That spark was immediate to start the third, as SMSU went on a 14-2 run to build a 30-point advantage at 57-27 before five straight points from Sadie Stelter gave the Mustangs a 65-30 lead after three quarters.

SMSU continued to hold a sizeable advantage in the fourth, going up by 40 on a 3-pointer from Reinhart before another 3-pointer from Emily Buysse made it 83-32 with 4:30 left, and the Mustangs closed it out for a 90-40 final.

Reinhart led the way offensively with a career-high 22 points while Stelter and Caleigh Rodning each added 12 and Baxter and Borchers each had nine.

Reinhart said their ability to look for the open player and make the extra pass has been a big key to their early-season success on the offensive end.

“Just looking for the next person and making the extra pass,” Reinhart said. “We weren’t being selfish, we were just looking for next open person and those people were just hitting shots and it was good for us.”

As a team, SMSU shot 44 percent from the floor (31 of 71), including 34 percent from beyond the arc and 70 percent (16 of 23) from the free-throw line.

Webb also felt they did a better job of attacking the rim and getting looks in the paint, especially in the second half.

“We finally started attacking, getting paint touches and playing with pace. We’ve got to be a North and South team and be an attack team,” Webb said. “We did a good job of coming into the second half with urgency; we talked a little bit about that at halftime, we weren’t really happy with that in the first half and in the second half we played a lot better.”

SMSU capitalized on 27 total North Central turnovers, which led to 33 points. Reinhart attributed that to their increased level of energy to start the second half.

“Another thing with defense is the energy,” Reinhart said. “We came out ready to go in the third quarter and our press was working well, we were getting after it and we were going after those extra steals.”

Defensively, the Mustangs limited the Rams to just 33 percent from the field (16 of 49) and 24 percent from behind the 3-point line.

Webb said their key was their aggressiveness when closing out on shots and not letting North Central get in a rhythm with their offense.

“We flew around finally and were aggressive on the ball and weren’t conceeding shots,” Webb said. “We were making them put it on the floor and we weren’t letting them get to the lane and we were a lot better basketball team in the second half, there’s no doubt.”

SMSU (3-2) will now face the University of Sioux Falls in its conference opener on Dec. 1 at 4 p.m. Webb said it’s the perfect challenge for their team to go against a tough opponent like the Cougars.

“It’s perfect, you want to play the team that’s picked first and see where you stack and where you are,” Webb said. “We’re going to battle every night and play fast and see what happens. I think we feel really good about where we are right now and there’s a lot of growth ahead of us yet.”

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