GREEN BAY, Wis. ? In its opening contest of a three-game road week, the North Dakota women's basketball team was handed a tough, 66-41, defeat by Green Bay in front of a crowd of 1,407 at the Kress Center.
With the loss, the Fighting Sioux fell to 1-3 for the first time since the 2004-05 season. Green Bay, the reigning Horizon League champion, improved to an undefeated 5-0.
Turnovers and fouls by the Sioux were main factors in the Phoenix success. UND had 27 turnovers, 13 in the first half which was UWGB's game total. The Sioux also committed 23 fouls and sent Green Bay to the line 26 times where it shot 57.7 percent. North Dakota finished 9-for-14 from the line for 64.3 percent.
Three-point shooting was an Achilles heel for both teams as neither hit more than 30 percent.
Senior Danye Guinn (G, St. Francis, Minn.) topped the Sioux with 12 points. She was 2-for-5 from the three point line, 4-for-10 from the field and 2-for-2 from the free throw line. UND's second-highest scorer, senior Kierah Kimbrough (Greenbush, Minn.) was held scoreless until 3:36 remaining in the second half. She finished with six points.
The Phoenix was led by a trio of players as Celeste Hoewisch and Kayla Tetschlag recorded 14 points apiece and Lavesa Glover handed in 13 points.
Head coach Gene Roebuck was short for words as said merely that the Sioux just didn't compete.
After letting the Sioux work 40 seconds off of the clock with no avail, Green Bay's Kati Hardy drove the ball down the left side of an open lane to put the first points on the board.
The Phoenix went on a 12-0 run before the Sioux silence was broken when Guinn kissed a short shot off of the glass at 12:39.
North Dakota broke the 10-point mark with less than five minutes remaining in the first half when Guinn dished to junior Whitney Ledger (F, Bismarck, N.D.) on the baseline. She then hit sophomore Corey Lof (F, Detroit Lakes, Minn.) under the basket for the quick jump shot.
Seconds later, Guinn nailed her 13th three-pointer of the season to move the score to 27-14 in favor of Green Bay.
The Sioux kept up with the Phoenix in the final four minutes of the half with the aid of a three-pointer from freshman Ashley Privratsky (G, Devils Lake, N.D.) and a quick put back by Guinn.
Heading into the locker-room, UND trailed 37-19.
The Sioux opened the second stanza with a set of three free throws, one by sophomore Andrea LaFrance (G, Bismarck, N.D.) and a pair from Guinn, but a 17-5 Green Bay advantage in the first five minutes put the game at 52-24 in favor of the home team.
With just under eight minutes remaining in the game, North Dakota was down 63-26 with all but two of its 15 second half points coming from the bonus line.
In the final four minutes of the game, UND out-scored Green Bay 14-0 to a 66-41 final
The Fighting Sioux continue on the road as they travel south to Arizona for the Northern Arizona Fairfield/Holiday Inn Thanksgiving Classic in Flagstaff. UND will tipoff against UC Riverside at 3:05 p.m. on Friday and will conclude the week's action with a 5:05 p.m. game against tournament host Northern Arizona on Saturday.
- Go Sioux -
Game notes: The last time UND was 1-3 to start the season was in 2004-05 ... The last time UND was 0-3 on the road was 1981-82 ... Guinn is now ranked No. 7 all-time in career three-point field goals made with 148.
