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Ava Bardic driving vs. Concordia Moorhead
Kodiak Creative
62
Concordia-M'head CC 20-6,18-2 MIAC
75
Winner Ill. Wesleyan IWU 23-5,14-2 CCIW
Concordia-M'head CC
20-6,18-2 MIAC
62
Final
75
Ill. Wesleyan IWU
23-5,14-2 CCIW
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Concordia-M'head CC 11 16 16 19 62
Ill. Wesleyan IWU 20 24 21 10 75

Game Recap: Women's Basketball |

Women’s Hoops Wins First Game of NCAA Tournament

Titans play winner of Wartburg and Wisconsin Lutheran

Press Conference

WAVERLY, Iowa - The Illinois Wesleyan University women's basketball team escaped with a 75-62 win over Concordia College Moorhead (Minn.) in the first round of the NCAA Tournament Friday evening, March 1, inside Levick Arena. Illinois Wesleyan improves to 23-5 on the season, and will face the winner of Wisconsin Lutheran College and host Wartburg College on Saturday night, March 2, in Waverly, Iowa. Concordia sees their season end at 20-6. 

Sophomore Ava Bardic (Lincolnshire, Ill.-Stevenson) poured in a game-high 24 points, including four three-pointers, while also tying for the team lead with five assists and pacing IWU with three steals. Junior Kate Palmer (Geneva, Ill.-Geneva) totaled 14 points on 4-of-9 shooting with a pair of three-balls. She added five assists and two steals. Also finishing in double figures were junior Caite Knutson (Maryville, Ill.-Collinsville) and sophomore Sawyer White (Downers Grove, Ill.-Montini Catholic), who finished with 12 and 10 points, respectively. Junior Mallory Powers (Amboy, Ill.-Amboy) narrowly missed a double-double with eight points and a team-high 10 boards.

As a team, Illinois Wesleyan shot 37.1 percent from the floor, going 26-for-70. The Green and White hit 11 three-pointers on 31 attempts (35.5 percent) and converted 12-of-16 free throw chances. Concordia Moorhead used a strong fourth quarter to build up its field goal percentage to 46.2, as the Cobbers finished 24-for-52. CCM went 11-for-14 at the charity stripe.

IWU edged out Concordia Moorhead on the glass, 41-34, thanks in large part to 19 offensive rebounds. The difference led to a 16-5 lead in second chance scoring for the Green and White. The Titans won the turnover battle, 20-13, and doubled up the Cobbers in points off miscues, 28-14. Illinois Wesleyan also finished with advantages in fastbreak scoring (15-6), bench scoring (17-9), and blocks (4-1).

Leading 12-6 at the game's first media timeout, Powers picked off a pass to force a turnover to keep momentum with the Green and White. IWU capitalized on the heady defensive play with a three-pointer from White with the shot clock winding down, before Knutson's bucket in the paint stretched the lead to double-digits, 17-6, with just under three minutes left in the period.

Bardic ended the frame with a driving reverse layup to lift IWU to a 20-11 lead after 10 minutes.

Four three-pointers and an 11-point outburst from Bardic helped the Titans mount a 20-point lead.

With Concordia Moorhead pulling within eight, Bardic found Palmer for a three-ball to reclaim a double-digit advantage. Consecutive layups in transition from Bardic and then Knutson were followed by a three-pointer from Powers to stretch the lead to 16 with 3:16 on the clock. Another Powers trey made it a 20 point game, 42-22, with 49 seconds remaining in the half.

Illinois Wesleyan held a 44-27 advantage coming out of halftime. After the frantic run-and-jump press from the Titans forced a Cobber miscue, Powers found sophomore Laura Mahlum (Barrington, Ill.-Barrington) for a deep three-pointer to give the Green and White its largest lead of night, 65-43, into the final period.

In the fourth quarter, a four-and-a-half minute scoring drought by the Titans allowed the Cobbers to cut into the IWU lead. Concordia Moorhead outscored Illinois Wesleyan, 19-10, in the frame, but it was not enough to upend the Green and White's stronghold. 

The Titans will play the winner of tonight's game between Wartburg and Wisconsin Lutheran tomorrow, March 2 at 7:30 p.m. inside Levick Arena. 

 
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