NDSU Women Battle Summit League Leader South Dakota Sunday in Katherine Burgum Classic

Game 23: South Dakota (18-5, 8-2 Summit League)
2015 Katherine Burgum Classic
Sunday, Feb. 8 | 2 p.m.
Bentson Bunker Fieldhouse | Fargo, N.D.
Live Stats | Free Live Audio | Live Video
Radio: 790 KFGO (Jack Michaels, play-by-play), 1:40 p.m. airtime
TV: None

NDSU Notes (PDF) | Summit League Weekly Release (PDF)

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NDSU Women Battle League Leader South Dakota Sunday in Katherine Burgum Classic
            The NDSU women's basketball team (9-13, 5-5 Summit League) will look to end a three-game losing streak when it battles Summit League leader South Dakota (18-5, 8-2 Summit League) on Sunday, Feb. 8, at the Bentson Bunker Fieldhouse in the ninth annual Katherine Burgum Classic.

The Series Against South Dakota
            Sunday's game against the Coyotes will be the 64th meeting in the all-time series. NDSU leads the series, 41-22, but has dropped the past four meetings, including an 84-69 setback in Vermillion, S.D., earlier this season. The Bison's last win over South Dakota was a 57-50 victory at USD. The last home win for NDSU over South Dakota was a 64-50 triumph during the 2011-12 season.

About the Coyotes
            The Coyotes are 18-5 overall and boast a Summit League-leading record of 8-2 after defeating Fort Wayne on Friday at home in Vermillion, 91-80. The 'Yotes are ranked 25th in the latest CollegeInsider.com Women's Mid-Major Top 25 poll.
            Through 23 games, USD is paced by Summit League preseason second team selection Raeshel Contreras, who is averaging 15.9 points per game. Summit League preseason first team honoree Nicole Seekamp is second on the team in scoring with 14.0 points per game and leads the team and The Summit League in assists with 5.0 per game. Margaret McCloud leads South Dakota on the boards with 6.5 rebounds per game.
            The Coyotes lead the league in points (79.9), field-goal percentage (.447), assists (16.6) and steals (8.5). USD is holding opponents to 68.8 points per game, sixth-lowest in the league.

Catching Up With The Bison
            The Bison are 9-13 overall and sit in a tie for sixth-place in The Summit League with a record of 5-5 after falling at home to Western Illinois Friday, 66-60. The loss was the third straight for NDSU.
            Through 22 contests, Brooke LeMar leads the Bison and The Summit League in scoring with 19.5 points per game. She also paces NDSU in assists with 4.5 per game. Holly Johnson is second on the team in scoring with 12.2 points per game and leads the Bison and is tied for fourth in The Summit League in rebounding with 7.3 boards per game. Marena Whittle leads North Dakota State and is tied for The Summit League lead in steals with 2.0 takeaways per game.
            As a team, the Bison are averaging 68.7 points per game, but allowing 73.4 per game to their opponents.

Home Sweet Home
            The Bison are 6-3 in Fargo this season. NDSU is 4-2 in the Bentson Bunker Fieldhouse and 2-1 at Scheels Arena.

Welcome to the Club!
            Brooke LeMar netted her 1,000th career point in the game at South Dakota on Thursday, Jan. 15. LeMar has scored 881 points as a Bison and netted 240 points in her two seasons with Southern Illinois prior to transferring to NDSU, giving her a total of 1,121 points heading into the game against South Dakota Sunday. She is the 31st student-athlete in NDSU history to join the 1,000 Point Club.

Breaking the 30-point Threshold
            LeMar has scored at least 30 points twice this season and is two 30-point games away from tying Kasey Morlock (1993-96) and Janice Woods (1982-86) for most 30-point games in a career. LeMar has exceeded 20 points in 11 games in 2014-15.

Notable Recent Career Milestones

Liz Keena posted a career-high 14 rebounds in the game against Western Illinois Friday, Feb. 6. The Hasting, Minn., native also netted 10 points, securing her first double-double of the season.
Holly Johnson matched her career-high for rebounds with 14 boards against Western Illinois Friday, Feb. 6.
Taylor Thunstedt made her first collegiate start on Saturday, Jan. 31, at South Dakota State. The freshman from Spicer, Minn., tallied nine points on 4-for-9 shooting to go along with three assists and one steal.
Thunstedt snagged a career-high six rebounds in NDSU's win at Omaha Thursday, Jan. 22. The Spicer, Minn., native also matched her career-high in scoring for the second straight game, netting 15 points.
Kahla Becken netted a career-high 21 points in NDSU's win over Fort Wayne on Saturday, Jan. 17. The Lino Lakes, Minn., native went 7-for-10 from the floor and 4-for-6 from three-point range to tally 21 points. The seven made field goals and four made treys matched her career-highs.
Marena Whittle tallied a new career-high six steals against IUPUI on Jan. 8. Whittle has recorded at least one takeaway in 18 of 21 games this season with 10 multiple steal games.

Past Katherine Burgum Classic Results and MVPs
Year               Opponent                            Result
2006              Minnesota                           W, 62-48
(MVPs - Lisa Bue, Ashley Ellis-Milan)
2007              Montana State                  W, 82-58
(MVPs - Lisa Bue, Nubia Garcia)
2009              Western Illinois                 W, 52-46
(MVPs - Whitney Trecker, Katy Clark)
2010              IPFW                                     W, 64-52
(MVPs - Katie Birkel, Sydney Weinert)
2011              Oakland                               L, 48-60
(MVPs - Abby Plucker, Bethany Watterworth)
2012              South Dakota State                  L, 52-88
(MVPs - Danielle Muri, Ashley Eide)
2013              Omaha                                 W, 63-62
(MVPs - Dani DeGagne, Paige Frauendorfer)
2014              South Dakota State                  L, 53-73
(MVPs - Brooke LeMar, Kerri Young)

Dishing it Out
            Brooke LeMar dished out a season-high nine assists in the Bison's win over IUPUI Jan. 8. The Canyon Country, Calif., native has at least four assists in 14 of 22 contests this season.

At the Line Down the Stretch
            Brooke LeMar is 14-of-18 (.778) from the free-throw line in the final minute of games this season, including a 7-for-8 (.875) mark in the final minute of Summit League games. As a team, NDSU is 19-of-25 (.760) at the line in the last minute of games this season, four-percent better than its overall season average.

Converting Scoring Opportunities
            Taylor Thunstedt leads the Bison in field-goal percentage in Summit League play, going 34-for-70 for 49 percent. Emily Spier is second, making 22 of 46 attempts for 48 percent. Kahla Becken (46 percent), Liz Keena (43 percent) and Holly Johnson (42 percent) round out the top five in league field-goal percentage for NDSU.

Thunstedt for Three!
            Taylor Thunstedt is shooting a team-high 47 percent from three-point range in Summit League competition, going 23-for-49.

Inside Presence
            Emily Spier leads the Bison in field-goal percentage through 22 contests, making 47 of 99 attempts for 48 percent.

Hitting the Offensive Boards
            Holly Johnson and Liz Keena have combined for 94 offensive rebounds through 22 games. Keena leads the Bison and ranks 5th in The Summit League in offensive rebounds with 2.5 per game while Johnson is second on the team and ranks 13th in the league with 1.8 per game.

From Downtown!
            Taylor Thunstedt leads the Bison from beyond-the-arc through 22 contests, going 39-of-104 for 38 percent. Kahla Becken is second, making 29 of 81 attempts for 36 percent.

Securing the Perimeter
            The Bison are holding opponents to just 30 percent (112-379) shooting from three-point range through 22 games. NDSU is averaging 6.5 made treys per game compared to just 5.1 for its opponents. NDSU has given up just 51 treys in its 10 Summit League games.

Creating Offense from Defense
            In their 10 league games, the Bison have scored 144 points off 149 turnovers, an average of 14.4 points per game. NDSU's opponents have only scored 122 points off 138 Bison miscues for 12.2 points per game.

Sharing the Basketball
            The Bison have tallied double-digit assists in 17 of 22 games this season. NDSU has tallied a season-high 19 assists in two games this season (Oral Roberts, Jan. 2; IUPUI, Jan. 8).

Getting to the Basket
            The Bison have scored 150 points off fast break baskets through 22 games, compared to just 86 points from their adversaries. NDSU is averaging 6.8 fast break points per game.

NDSU Summit League Women's Basketball Player of the Week Winners
Jan. 5 - Brooke LeMar

NDSU in the NCAA National Statistics (As of Feb. 6)
Relevant Team Statistics:
Free-Throw Percentage - 77th out of 343 (.716) ... Three-Point Field Goals Per Game - 69th out of 343 (6.5/game) ... Turnovers Per Game - 100th out of 343 (15.1) ... Assist-to-Turnover Ratio - 96th out of 343 (0.91) ... Scoring Offense - 96th out of 343 (68.7/game) ... Three-Point FG Defense - 98th out of 343 (.296)

Relevant Individual Statistics:
Points Per Game - Brooke LeMar (37th out of 250, 19.5/game) ... Free-Throw Percentage - Brooke LeMar (77th out of 250, .820) ... Assists Per Game - Brooke LeMar (78th out of 250, 4.5/game)

NDSU in The Summit League Statistics (As of Feb. 6)
Relevant Team Statistics (All Games):
Points - 5th (68.7/game) ... Rebounds - 6th (38.5/game) ... Assists - 4th (13.7/game) ... Free-Throw Pct. - 5th (.716) ... Steals - 3rd (8.0/game ... Turnovers - 3rd (15.1/game) ... Blocks - 5th (3.4/game) ... Field-Goal Pct. - 7th (.396) ... Three-Point Field-Goal Pct. - 8th (.331)

Relevant Individual Statistics (All Games):
Brooke LeMar - Points: 1st (19.5/game), Assists: 3rd (4.5/game), FT Pct.: 5th (.820), Steals: 6th (1.7/game) ... Marena Whittle - Steals: T-1st (2.0/game), Defensive Rebounds: 4th (5.8/game), Rebounds: 6th (7.2/game), Blocks: T-4th (1.0/game) ... Holly Johnson - Rebounds: T-4th (7.3/game), Defensive Rebounds: 4th (5.8/game) ... Liz Keena - Offensive Rebounds: 5th (2.5/game)

Last Time Out: Late Rally Falls Short as Bison Women Fall to Western Illinois Friday, 66-60
            In a game that featured 12 lead changes and five ties, the North Dakota State women's basketball team (9-13, 5-5 Summit League) came up short, falling 66-60 to the Western Illinois Leathernecks (15-8, 7-3 Summit League) on Friday, Feb. 6, at the Bentson Bunker Fieldhouse.
            Three Bison reached double figures in the contest, paced by Brooke LeMar, who led all scorers with 25 points, while Taylor Thunstedt tallied 12 points on 4-for-9 shooting. Liz Keena rounded out the double-figure scoring for NDSU, tallying her first double-double of the season with 10 points and a career-high 14 rebounds. Holly Johnson also snagged 14 boards for North Dakota State, matching her career-best.
            NDSU shot 36 percent from the field for the game, going 25-for-70, and were 36 percent from three-point range, making nine of 25 attempts. The Bison went just 1-for-3 from the free-throw line.
            North Dakota State outrebounded Western Illinois in the game, 52-50.
            Sophie Reichelt (18 points, 11 rebounds) and Ashley Luke (17 points, 19 rebounds) paced the Leathernecks in the game.
            Western Illinois shot 32 percent from the field, going 24-for-74, and made eight of 25 three-pointers for 32 percent. WIU went 10-for-15 from the foul line for 67 percent.

Last Time Out Against South Dakota: NDSU Women's Basketball Drops Game at South Dakota Thursday, 84-69
            The North Dakota State University women's basketball team (7-10, 3-2 Summit League) dropped an 84-69 decision to the South Dakota Coyotes (13-4, 3-1 Summit League) on Thursday evening, Jan. 15, inside the DakotaDome in Vermillion.
            Brooke LeMar, who surpassed 1,000 career points in the game, paced the Bison with a game-high 23 points, and Holly Johnson tallied her second-straight double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds. Kahla Becken rounded out the Bison in double figures, tallying 13 points. Becken also went a team-best 8-for-9 from the free-throw line, matching her career-high for free-throws made, and snagged six rebounds to go along with four assists.
            North Dakota State shot 37 percent from the field in the game, going 25-for-67, and were 5-for-19 from beyond-the-arc for 26 percent. The Bison were 14-for-18 from the free-throw line for 78 percent.
            Raeshel Contreras led six Coyotes in double figures with 17 points on 6-for-12 shooting.
            South Dakota went 34-for-70 from the field in the contest for 49 percent and 6-for-19 from three for 32 percent. The Coyotes shot 83 percent from the foul line, going 10-of-12.
            USD outrebounded NDSU, 44-35, and outscored the Bison in the paint, 40-26.

2014-15 Summit League Preseason Poll (1st-place votes in parenthesis)
South Dakota State (27) - 513 pts.
South Dakota (4) - 420 pts.
IUPUI - 408 pts.
Western Illinois (1) - 358 pts.
Denver - 253 pts.
Fort Wayne - 202 pts.
Oral Roberts - 178 pts.
Omaha - 165 pts.
North Dakota State - 158 pts.

Preseason Honors
            Senior guard Brooke LeMar, the reigning Summit League Newcomer of the Year and a second team all-league selection in 2013-14, was named to the preseason Summit League first team after averaging 15.1 points and 5.3 assists per game last season.

Head Coach Maren Walseth
            Maren Walseth was named the 10th head women's basketball coach in NDSU history Monday, April 14, 2014.
            Walseth joined the Bison after spending seven years as an assistant coach at Big Ten power Penn State University in State College, Pa., where she helped the Lady Lions to three Big Ten championships, four NCAA tournament appearances and two NCAA Sweet 16 appearances.
            Prior to becoming an assistant at Penn State, Walseth spent three years as an assistant coach at the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md.
            A native of Bloomington, Minn., Walseth was a two-time All-Big Ten selection and a three-time Academic All-Big Ten honoree as a forward at Penn State from 1997-2002. She was also a key member of the 2000 Lady Lion team that advanced to the Final Four and claimed the Big Ten conference championship. Walseth also was a member of the 1998 WNIT championship team. She graduated from Penn State in 2002 with a bachelor's degree in communications.
            Walseth was drafted by the Sacramento Monarchs in the third-round of the 2001 WNBA draft and spent four years playing professionally. She played for the Washington Mystics of the WNBA in 2002 before spending two years playing professionally in France. Walseth also spent a season with the Women's National Basketball League's (NWBL) Colorado Chill.
            Walseth's sister, Annika, played for NDSU during the 2007-08 season.

On the Horizon
            The Bison travel to Tulsa, Okla., for a midweek Summit League contest at Oral Roberts on Wednesday, Feb. 11. Tip-off from the Mabee Center is scheduled for 7 p.m.

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Players Mentioned

Kahla Becken

Holly Johnson

Liz Keena

Brooke LeMar

Emily Spier

Taylor Thunstedt

Marena Whittle