GRAND FORKS, N.D.--Freshman guard Mallory Youngblut came off the bench to score a career-high 22 points, carrying the third-ranked Fighting Sioux to an 88-64 victory over Nebraska-Omaha this afternoon at the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center.
UND improves to 24-2 overall and 9-2 in the North Central Conference heading into next Saturday's regular season finale against Minnesota Duluth.
The win puts the Sioux back into the win column just two days after a loss at South Dakota all but eliminated UND from NCC title contention. Earlier today, USD defeated Minnesota Duluth to clinch no worse than a share of the league title.
Youngblut's outside shooting was a deadly complement to UND's always-steady post game. The Davenport, Iowa, native went 8-for-11 from the field and hit five of the team's three-pointers. With the Sioux leading by just one point with 6:26 left in the half, Youngblut drained a three on consecutive possessions to put UND on top 30-25.
Then the freshman added another triple with just under three minutes remaining to stretch the Sioux lead to 41-30, as UND finished the half on an 11-2 tear.
Youngblut would score eight more points in the second half, but her opening 20 minutes opened up the inside for center Ashley Langen (Sr. Kennedy, Minn.) and forward Kierah Kimbrough (Greenbush, Minn.) to take over the rest of the way. Langen scored 10 second-half points and finished with 18 points and 11 rebounds, her fourth straight double-double.
Langen also joined former two-time national player of the year Jenny Crouse (1995-99) as the only players in UND history to score 2,000 career points.
Kimbrough, meanwhile, added 15 points, eight rebounds and three blocks.
UNO's Alyssa Green scored 19 points to lead the Mavericks, who committed 23 turnovers and shot just 35.8 percent from the field.
The Sioux shot 47.1 percent from the field, including 44 percent from the three-point range. UND matched its season high with 11 treys.
The Mavericks were able to match the Sioux in rebounding, 38-38, snapping UND's 36-game streak of outrebounding its opponent.
UND will close out the regular season next Saturday at home against Minnesota Duluth. The Sioux still have a mathematical chance to capture a share of the NCC title, but need to defeat UMD and hope for USD to lose its final two games.
Notes: Kimbrough passed Pam Solseth (1976-80) for 13th place on UND's all-time scoring list ... The Sioux handed out more than 20 assists for the eighth straight game, extending their season high streak ... Langen moved into a tie with Marisa Leighton (2000-004) for seventh on UND's all-time games played list ... Senior G Karla Beck (Munich, N.D.) had three steals, giving her 170 for her career to rank eighth all-time at UND.
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