ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. - North Dakota State rebounded from a double-digit halftime deficit and earned a 68-63 victory over Creighton on Friday in the University of New Mexico Lobo Classic at The Pit.
Danni Heintzelman sparked the Bison (3-3), scoring 13 of her 15 points in the second half.
Heintzelman provided a much-needed boost after NDSU shot 32 percent in the first half.
"We just came out flat," Heintzelman said.
However, NDSU came out firing in the second half and quickly cut the lead with the help of Creighton's cold shooting. The Blue Jays (2-3) hit only 23 percent of their second-half shots.
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"On defense, we came out more intense in the second half and took some pride in what we were doing," Heintzelman said.
Heintzelman teamed with frontcourt partner Brandee Gibbs to compensate for Creighton's star forward Angie Janis, who had 28 points and 11 rebounds.
Gibbs scored 10 points and added 14 rebounds.
Heintzelman scored 10 points to spark an 18-4 second-half run. Katie Dahlen gave NDSU a 45-43 lead on a layup with more than 13 minutes remaining.
Katie Lorenz's 3-pointer with less than 3 minutes left gave the Bison the lead for good. Lorenz finished with 11 points, four assists and two steals.
"We did a better job of moving and working the ball around on offense," Heintzelman said. "The first half it was one and done."
NDSU will face the winner of No. 18-ranked New Mexico and Louisiana-Monroe at 9:15 p.m. today in the tournament's championship game.
CREIGHTON (2-3): Erickson 1-4 1-2 4, Janis 10-22 8-10 28, Hoffman 0-2 1-2 1, Woodard 2-15 3-4 9, Thrall 3-11 1-2 9, Herring 1-2 0-0 3, Bush 0-0 0-0 0, Kaus 0-0 0-0 0, Cain 3-3 0-0 6, Voss 1-1 0-0 2. Totals 21-60 16-24 63.
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NDSU (3-3): Kayla Dahlen 2-5 2-3 7, Gibbs 3-10 4-4 10, Heintzelman 5-14 3-4 15, Lorenz 4-12 2-2 11, Bue 3-10 0-0 6, Katie Dahlen 2-4 0-0 4, Penley 1-1 0-0 2, Ellison 3-6 0-0 6, Slyt 1-3 0-0 2, Sonstelie 2-6 0-0 4. Totals 26-71 11-13 68.
Halftime: Creighton 39, NDSU 27. 3-point goals: Creighton (Erickson 1-1, Woodard 2-4, Thrall 1-4, Herring 1-1), NDSU 5-13 (Kayla Dahlen 1-4, Heintzelman 2-3, Lorenz 12, Ellison 0-2, Slyt 0-1, Sonstelie 1-1). Total fouls: Creighton 16, NDSU 17. Rebounds: Creighton 45 (Janis 11), NDSU 44 (Gibbs 14). Assists: Creighton 14 (Hoffman 3), NDSU 15 (Kayla Dahlen 4). Steals: Creighton 6 (Thrall 3), NDSU 9 (Gibbs 3). Turnovers: Creighton 17 (Cain 5), NDSU 13 (three with 3).
