SIOUX FALLS -- Led by three players in double digits, including 16 points from junior Chase Grinde, the No. 24 University of Sioux Falls Men's Basketball team (1-0, 0-0 NSIC) had a successful season opener with a 64-60 victory against the University of Mary (0-1, 0-0 NSIC) on Saturday afternoon at the Stewart Center.
Aside from Grinde, the Cougars, which won its opener for the third straight year, had 13 points, six rebounds and a team-high three blocks from senior forward Teathloach Pal. Freshman Wesley Oba had 11 points - all in the first half. With the victory, USF beat Mary for the fourth straight time and moved its edge in the overall series to 8-2.
USF Head Coach Chris Johnson, who recorded his 234th career win, including 218 at USF, was pleased with the overall effort of his team, especially the younger players on the squad.
"I thought we played really well in the first half. We made a lot of shots and our defensive effort was good in the first half but I thought we might have tired out a bit in the second half, which is reflective of a season-opening game," said Johnson. In the end, it was a similar game to those last year. Sometimes, we go into those periods when it is a fight to score. But a win is a win and we will take every one of them," added Johnson, whose team will play U-Mary again on Sunday at 2 pm.
Johnson also noted the play of his young players, including Oba, who had a rim-shaking dunk while hitting 5-of-six shots in the first half . "It was a conscious thought and effort to get those guys in the game early. We wanted them to know what a Northern Sun game is like so they can be prepared for the rest of the season," he said.
USF opened the first half by hitting seven of its first 11 shots. Overall in the team's opening half of the season, USF was 18-of-35 for 51.43 percent but 3-of-10 from three-point range. As a result, the Cougars led, 41-28, at the break. In the second half, USF had a bit of a cool stretch (scoreless for first 6:52), going just 8-25 from the floor and were outscored by the visitors, 32-23, in the second half. Five late points from sophomore point guardJack Thompson, including 3-of-4 from the foul line, in the final 11 seconds sealed the season-opening win for the Cougars. Overall, USF was 26-of-60 from the field for 43 percent, including 4-of-18 for 22 percent from distance. USF had a 26-to-17 advantage in made field goals but U-Mary held the edge at the foul line, 23-to-8.
Grinde, a returning All-NSIC guard, went 7-10 on field goals and 2-3 on threes, racking up 16 points. He reached double digits for the 30th time of his career.
Pal, another returning All-NSIC standout, reached double digits for the 25th time in his career. Pal hit 6-of-13 field goals for his 13 points. Thompson played 34 minutes and hita crucial jumper late in the game to go with his clutch foul shots. He had four rebounds, four assists, and five points.
USF's bench played a critical role in the Cougar's win with a 22-11 edge over U-Mary. USF also maintained a 40-to-24 edge in points in the paint.
As for U-Mary, Matt Kreklow had a game-high 24 points to lead U-Mary. Kreklow, who was 5-of-11 from the field and 12-of-14 at the foul line, had a game-high nine rebounds. Trever Kaiser added 17 for the Marauders, who 17-of-46 from the field for 37 percent. U-Mary was just 3-of-13 from three-point range for 23 percent.
USF vs U-Mary Breakdown
Early on Grinde scored six points, including a lay-up for a steal, and Pal added four as the Cougars took a 14-6 lead with 12:46 to play in the first half. The Cougars extended the lead to 18-8 with 11:40 to play in the first half. At the 10:49 mark, USF extended its lead to 20-9. Later, Grinde knocked down a three as the Cougars built the advantage to 26-11 with 8:14 to play in the first half.
Then, freshman guard John Henry hit his first career three as USF took a 29-14 lead with 6:24 to play. After a first career three by Oba, sophomore guard Troy Houghton scored inside as the Cougars led, 34-18 lead over U-Mary. By halftime, USF, which was led by Grinde's 13 points, had a 41-28 margin.
In the second half, the Cougars opened on a scoring drought and struggled by hitting just 8-of-25 field goals in the half as the Marauders made a run. U-Mary opened on a 9-0 run to pull within, 41-37 at the 13:51 mark. Kaiser scored on a pair of lay-ups to lead the Marauders's rally.
With 13:08 to play in the second half, Jake Kettner (four points) scored to stop USF's scoring drought at 6:52 and the lead moved to 43-37. After a Pal basket, USF had a 45-37 lead. Later, U-Mary drew within 57-53 on a pair of foul shots from Kreklow with under three minutes to play. At the 2:35 mark, Thompson hit a jumper as the Cougars pushed the advantage to 61-54. After U-Mary closed within 61-59, Thompson converted 3-of-4 foul shots, including two with 11 seconds to go and was 1-of-2 with six second left to ice the game for USF.
