Game Notes: (WBK) Augustana College @ North Central College (2/4/12)

Final Score
Augustana 67, NCC 55

Summary
This was a competitive game on an emotional night, where the Cardinals (6-15, 0-10) were in the game throughout, but the Vikings (10-11, 2-8) were able to break a 6-6 tie with a 13-2 run. The Cardinals closed the gap to 6 at halftime. Once again they play well enough to be in the game early, but then things fell apart a little bit in the second half. The Cardinals never got any closer than about 6 or 7 the rest of the way, bowing out to an Augie team that got hot near the end.

Key Stats

• NCC: 18-62 FG (29%), 5-21 3PT (23.8%), 14-26 FT (53.8%). Ouch. They've been running the offense a little better of late, but the shots just aren't falling. There were some ill-advised threes taken, and more missed layups again last night. But the free throws have not really been good for most of the season. You're not going to win many games shooting 29 percent overall.
• Emily Collins (NCC): 4-13 FG (0-1 3PT), 2-7 FT, 10 pts, 14 reb, 1 ast, 1 blk. I was impressed by her effort last night and her ability to get to the basketball. I didn't realize her shooting night was that bad, but those nights happen. She needs to forget about that part of her game, while still building on her rebounding. I could have also gone with Helen Muleya, who had a good game (15 pts on 5-9 shooting, plus 4 of 7 at the line), but Collins' numbers down low were amazing. Two seniors who have talent, and will be missed.
• Molly Etheridge (AUG): 5-11 FG (3-6 3PT), 6-6 FT, 19 pts, 9 reb, 4 ast. She came off the bench and was immediately lethal from deep. She was a big part of that 13-2 run for Augie. Though honestly, I didn't realize she was that aggressive on the glass. A big reason why Augie got their second conference win of the year (both of which have come against NCC).

Cardinal Turnover Watch
I need to start having more faith in this team. They had a season low 10 turnovers last night, with no player committing more than 2. A phenomenal job taking care of the basketball. Another big key to why NCC lost was that Augie took good care of the ball too, only giving it up 12 times. A much more mistake-free game than I'm used to seeing.

Final Thoughts
I feel bad criticizing this team of late, because they go all-out, and they do have a good team. They're unfortunately not much of a match for the Wesleyan's and Carthage's of the world, but against the lower tier of the conference, they're a competitive team. Unfortunately, they have a tendency of shooting themselves in the foot with either turnovers or off shooting nights. This has been a fun year of basketball to watch nonetheless, and I'm honored to have worked 10 games for this team with 2 more to work. They travel to Bloomington on Wednesday before coming back to face Wheaton on Saturday.