Day 2: Happy New Ear

More news about: Concordia-Moorhead | Dubuque | Southern Maine | SUNY Oneonta | UW-Platteville
Dec 29, 2022
 
Autumn Thompson and Concordia-Moorhead edged past No. 6 Amherst in a double-overtime thriller on Thursday afternoon.
Photo by Larry Radloff, d3photography.com
 


LAS VEGAS -- All good things must come to an end, and on Thursday at the D3hoops.com Classic, it was a long win streak that did so. The Amherst women's basketball team entered this year's Classic having won its first eight games in Vegas over four previous trips to the tournament, by an average margin of 27.5 points. And they extended that streak to nine wins with a win against Montclair State on the tournament's first day.

But the streak came to an end on Thursday, as Concordia-Moorhead weathered the Mammoth storm and pulled away to a 79-68 double overtime win against No. 6 Amherst. With 9:19 left in the fourth quarter, Reeya Patel hit a 3-pointer from the left win to get to 29 points and take a 52-48 lead on the Cobbers (6-2). It was the sort of shot that usually sparks a game-finishing run from the Mammoths, especially in Las Vegas.

But the Cobbers were having none of that. Makayla Anderson and Carlee Sieben answered with a layup and a 3-pointer to give Concordia the lead and reinforce that the Cobbers were not going away. Amherst took a three-point lead three times down the stretch, the last time when Maya Cwalina hit one of her two free throws with 47 seconds left. But Anderson answered with a 3-pointer off a feed from Emily Beseman to tie it back up with 34 seconds left. Amherst had a shot hit off the rim with six seconds left and Kori Barach rebounded it wide open to shoot but did not put it back up until the clock was nearly expired, sending the teams to overtime tied at 59-59.

AnLing Vera started off the fourth quarter with a 3-pointer to give Amherst (8-1) the lead, but once again, the Cobbers scored the next five points. The teams traded layups and and Concordia had the last shot but Amherst denied the Cobbers a good look at the basket. Beseman hit a big 3 with 2:18 left in the second overtime to put Concordia up 73-68, and Concordia scored the final six points as well to wrap up the win. Anderson led Concordia with 23 points and 13 rebounds, while Sieben and Beseman added 18 apiece.

In men's action, Logan Pearson spoiled Concordia-Moorhead's hopes of a 4-0 trip to Vegas, as UW-Platteville downed the Cobbers, 81-68. Concordia-Moorhead hung with the Pioneers through first half and got as close as 54-52 on Dylan Inninger's layup midway through the second half. The Pioneers then clamped down on defense and went on a 10-2 run keyed by five points from Pearson. Ben Probst ended that spurt with a three that staked the Pioneers to a 64-54 advantage and UW-Platteville held the Cobbers at bay the rest of the way.

Logan Pearson scored 35 points on 14-for-18 shooting in 33 minutes and Probst added 20 points with five 3-pointers for UW-Platteville (7-5). Rowan Nelson led Concordia-Moorhead (5-6) with 18 points.

Dubuque bounced back from Wednesday night's loss to Franklin and Marshall by bouncing Ramapo, 84-62. The Spartans poured in 13 three-pointers including three apiece from Sam Kilburg and Hunter Snyder. Dubuque converted 18 Ramapo turnovers into 24 points. The Roadrunners (5-7) were paced by Anthony Corbo who had 14 points, seven rebounds and five assists.

The other two women's games were not closely contested.

SUNY Oneonta set a new Classic record for fewest points allowed as the Red Dragons rolled over Wellesley, 49-33. The Blue took the lead, 14-13, early in the second period, but that was Wellesley's last basket for over a quarter. SUNY Oneonta pulled away for a 29-14 halftime lead and was never seriously threatened in the second half. The Red Dragons used 16 players and 11 scored, with Amanda Zuntag tallying eight on 4-for-5 shooting in just 15 minutes. SUNY Oneonta, which was the first SUNYAC team to participate in the event, heads back to Central New York 2-0 at the Classic and 9-3 overall.

Southern Maine had four players score double figures, and the Huskies ran past Montclair State, 64-47. Southern Maine seized control in the third quarter when starters Ashley Aceto and Tamrah Gould went to the bench with three fouls and reserves Mackenzie Roderick and Emma Haskell caught fire. Roderick and Hasell ignited a 13-1 run with a series of three pointers, and Southern Maine took a 21-point lead into the final period.

The Huskies (3-6) were led by Vanessa Vaughan who racked up 15 pointsand nine rebounds. Isabella Orlando had eight points for Montclair (5-6).