MANKATO, Minn. – A huge run spanning the third and fourth quarter and double-digit scoring efforts by four seniors guided University of Sioux Falls Women's Basketball to a 75-65 victory at Minnesota State to close the regular season on Saturday. The Cougars finish their regular season with a 19-7 record and a 15-7 mark in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference.
 
USF will host the first round of the NSIC/Sanford Health Basketball Tournament on Feb. 22. As the No. 4 seed from the NSIC south division, the Cougars will welcome NSIC north division No. 5 seed St. Cloud State for a 7 p.m. game. Tickets for the NSIC first round game can be purchased at USFCougars.com/tickets or at the box office -- disclaimer: there will be no reserved seating for the game; all seating areas will be general admission. The winner of Wednesday's game will advance to the quarterfinals, where they will take on the winner of MSU Moorhead and Southwest Minnesota State on Saturday, Feb. 25 at 12 p.m. at the Sanford Pentagon. More information, including links to buy tickets for the following rounds, can be found at NorthernSun.org/NSICTourney. 
 
In the victory over Minnesota State, USF's senior class was critical, but clutch shooting from freshman Mariah Szymanski was pivotal in USF's 21-2 run. Brooke Smith led all scorers with 18 points off the bench, knocking down a pair of threes in the process. Coming off a career night, Alyson Johnsen poured in 13 and Madi Robson scored 12 while handing out seven assists. Completing the quartet's double-digit night, Sam Knecht scored 10 and was two rebounds shy of a double-double, grabbing eight boards.
 
A sluggish first quarter for USF gave the Mavericks a seven-point advantage after the first 10 minutes of action, but the Cougars would return the favor. However, the Cougars found themselves down double digits before making their run. All four seniors scored in the first quarter and a late three by Andi Mataloni cut MSU's then-10-point lead to seven, 20-13 at the break.
 
Despite a 3-pointer by Alyson Johnsen early in the quarter, Minnesota State pushed their lead back to double digits less than two minutes into the second quarter. After an and-one by the Mavericks, USF reeled off 11 straight points with Smith leading the charge. The senior cashed in on a three to start the USF run and Madi Robson connected on a triple after some nifty ball movement by all five Cougars on the court.
 
After their deficit was cut in half, Jacey Huinker continued the run with a layup. Capping off the 11-0 burst was Smith, who scored two layups in less than 30 seconds, giving the Cougars a 27-26 advantage with 5:29 to play in the second quarter. The teams traded baskets with Robson, Mataloni and Smith each scoring on a layup and Robson hit a free throw to give the Cougars a one-point lead, 34-33 at halftime.
 
 All the drama of the first half were equaled in the third quarter as USF surrendered an early run before pushing ahead in the final minute of the period. MSU retook the lead on the first two possessions and after Mariah Szymanski's 3-pointer tied the game at 39-39, the Mavericks reeled off eight straight points.
 
Huinker halted the run with a jumper and Robson followed with a layup. Minnesota State scored on two free throws, but USF would close the half on a 9-0 run to retake the lead. Johnsen hit a three and Kaely Hummel scored her first points of the game to bring USF within one. Knecht would bring the Cougars over the hump with four straight points, including a nice pick and roll play with Robson feeding her for a layup in the final seconds of the third quarter.
 
The Cougars continued to roll to start the final quarter, seizing their chance to extend their lead in the must-win game. Szymanski hit a three and Smith followed with five straight points, a 3-pointer and layup, giving Sioux Falls a 60-49 lead after a 21-2 run, which lasted more than seven minutes aided by the USF defense, which held scoreless for nearly eight minutes.
 
Despite the run, Minnesota State had one more final push to cut into USF's double-digit lead. The Mavericks put together an 8-3 run, with USF's points coming off Szymanski's third three of the game, but clutch shooting at the free throw line and a timely 3-pointer by Smith kept the Cougars ahead by double digits. Breaking the press, Huinker found Knecht wide open on a cut to the basket and an easy layup gave her 10 points and put all four seniors in double digits to cap off the 75-65 win.