Hart scores 1,000th point as DWU falls

SIOUX CITY, Iowa — The Dakota Wesleyan University women’s basketball team faced Briar Cliff for the second time in five days, but the second meeting went much differently than the first.

No. 4-seeded Briar Cliff proved to be the higher seed as it defeated the No. 5-seeded Tigers 80-67 in the quarterfinal round of the Great Plains Athletic Conference tournament Wednesday in Sioux City, Iowa.

“They came with more energy than we did,” said Dakota Wesleyan head coach Jason Christensen, whose team ended its season at 20-11.

The Tigers came out slow, shooting 9-of-34 from the field and were just 1-of-13 from behind the arc in the first half.

“We didn’t shoot the ball real well (tonight),” Christensen said after the game. “It’s hard for us to compete with teams if we can’t shoot the ball real well.”

Dakota Wesleyan, which trailed 37-27 at the half, was 24-of-77 from the field, 6-of-30 in three-point baskets and 13-of-19 from the free-throw line.

The Tigers pulled within three in the second half but had costly turnovers, which Briar Cliff scored off of.

“We never fully recovered after that,” Christensen said.

Amanda Hart made two threes on the night for six points, allowing her to earn her 1,000th career point. The Tigers were led in scoring by Kim Johnson with 16 points. Brittany Hills scored 13 points and had eight rebounds, Elizabeth Lamb added 11 points and Katie Johnson grabbed a team-best 10 rebounds in the contest.

Briar Cliff was 25-of-69 from the field, 1-of-16 from behind the arc and 29-of-39 from the foul line. The Chargers won the rebounding battle 58-45.

Briar Cliff’s Slone Masters recorded a double-double with a game-high 19 points and 12 rebounds. Heather Haber scored 13 points, Sarah Reeves had 12 points and Kelsey Evans brought down a game-high 13 rebounds.

The Tigers have increased their wins in every season since Christensen has been at the helm.

“The girls did a good job about buying into the program and I’m proud of them for that,” Christensen said.

DAKOTA WESLEYAN 67

BRIAR CLIFF 80

Dakota Wesleyan (20-11)

Elizabeth Lamb 5-13 0-0 11; Taylor Piper 1-6 3-4 5; Amanda Hart 2-16 0-0 6; Brittany Hills 6-13 0-0 13; Kim Johnson 6-11 4-6 16; Lexie Christensen 0-4 1-2 1; Celeste Beck 2-7 0-0 6; Katie Johnson 2-7 5-7 9; Totals: 24-77 13-19 67.

Briar Cliff (23-8)

Kelsey Evans 2-6 5-6 9; Sarah Reeves 4-7 4-4 12; Heather Haber 5-11 3-4 13; Lexi Henschke 1-8 0-0 2; Regan Cooper 4-6 0-0 8; Paige Herrboldt 1-4 0-1 2; McKenzie Shipley 1-3 0-2 2; Slone Masters 3-8 13-18 19; Chante Williams 0-1 0-0 0; Jordan Sanger 2-10 4-4 9; Molly Snoozy 2-5 0-0 4; Totals: 25-69 29-39 80.

Halftime: BC 37-27. 3-point goals: DWU 6-30 (Lamb 1, Hart 2, Hills 1), BC 1-16 (Sanger); Rebounds: DWU 45 (Katie Johnson 10, Hills 8), BC 58 (Evans 13, Masters 12); Assists: DWU 15 (Piper 4), BC 17 (Evans 4); Steals: DWU 13 (Hills 4), BC 20 (Sanger 5); Turnovers: DWU 26, BC 25; Personal fouls: DWU 23, BC 20; Technical fouls: None.

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