Michigan Tech dismantles St. Cloud State 82-49
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
St. Cloud State | 4 | 10 | 18 | 17 | 49 |
|
Michigan Tech | 17 | 27 | 18 | 20 | 82 |
HOUGHTON Mich. – Michigan Tech used a massive first half to soar past St. Cloud State 82-49 Friday afternoon at SDC Gymnasium in non-conference women's basketball. With five players in double-figures, Tech shot 50-percent from beyond the arc (12-for-24) and 57-percent overall (24-for-46) to improve to a record of 5-1. St. Cloud State fell to 2-2.
Soraya Timms and Isabella Lenz paced the offense with 13 points apiece while Alex Rondorf narrowly missed a double-double after compiling 12 points, nine rebounds. Ellie Mackay and Sloane Zenner added 10 points apiece for the home Huskies.
Michigan Tech held St. Cloud State scoreless through the first 5:08 of the first quarter. Rondorf posted a quick seven points and Lenz banked in a jumper in the paint to give MTU its largest lead to that point, 17-4 at the end of the first quarter.
St. Cloud State's offense continued to struggle in the second quarter and SCSU finished the first half shooting just 5-for-31 (16-percent) from the floor. Meanwhile, Tech converted on 51-percent of shots with eight made threes. Rondorf led the way with 10 points as the MTU headed to the locker room ahead 44-14.
"I thought we came out with a lot of energy today," Timms said. "It started right at the tipoff. Our bench was engaged and I think that energy carried us offensively and defensively today."
Tech maintained its advantage in the third quarter as each team posted 18 points. Timms connected on her third 3-point try on three attempts and Mackay absorbed a charge in the paint. MTU extended the bench late in the fourth quarter and glided to victory in Houghton.
"We really executed today right from the start," said head coach Sam Clayton. "The biggest emphasis was on defense and taking away what they wanted to do in that first half. Everybody who came in contributed and did what was asked of them. Bella is always reliable and super consistent coming off the bench. Today, Soraya was making really good ball screens coming off of ball screens. Emma Anderson also played well along with Tessa and Mady so it's nice to know we have that depth, especially playing in the first game of a back-to-back today."
Tech led several key categories, including rebounds (35-28), steals (9-2) and blocks (4-0). The bench also contributed 36 points and the Black and Gold downed 18 of 21 free throws (85-percent). Both teams committed 14 turnovers as Michigan Tech posted its largest margin of victory so far this season.
Saint Cloud State finished 16-for-55 (29-percent) from the field, including 5-for-18 (28-percent) from downtown. The visitors put away 12 of 22 (54.5-percent) at the free throw line.
Michigan Tech (5-1, 0-0 GLIAC) wraps up a seven-game stretch of non-conference opponents against Minnesota Duluth (4-1) Saturday at 2 p.m. The Bulldogs collected a 50-37 win at Northern Michigan on Friday.
