DENVER Freshman forward Kaetlyn Murdoch (Temple, Texas) scored 14 points and junior Ashly Robinson (Bloomington, Minn.) pulled down a career-high 14 rebounds as the University of Denver women’s basketball team defeated visiting North Dakota State University 56-49 on Monday night at Magness Arena.

 

Denver (5-4, 1-0 SBC) received points from all nine players, led by Murdoch’s second consecutive double-digit scoring effort. Senior center Sara Bents (Billings, Mont.) added 10 points, going 4-for-4 from the field and 2-for-2 from the free throw line.

 

“Tonight’s game was a tough game for us because it was a battle on both sides of the floor,” said head coach Erik Johnson. “The mark of a good team is how tough games like these are handled and I think we made a statement for ourselves that we could compete against a quality opponent.”

 

Along with her career rebounding effort, Robinson tallied a career-high four steals and added six points and two assists. Senior Andie Mason (Gilbert, Ariz.) also had a career night with six rebounds, while dishing in eight points, four assists and one steal.

 

North Dakota State (4-5) was led by Jerri Penley’s double-double with 15 points and 14 rebounds.

 

A Murdoch layup gave the Pioneers their first lead of the game at 8-7 with 12:28 to play in the opening half after Robinson scored five of DU’s first six points. The teams remained locked at 12-12 for a 4:09 period midway through the half until Inger Hodgson gave NDSU a 14-12 lead with 6:53 remaining.

 

The Bison climbed to a five-point lead at 17-12 before Denver jumped on an 8-0 run to take a three-point lead, 20-17 with 3:15 to play in the half. However, NDSU used a 4-0 run to regain the lead before Mason closed the half with a three-pointer, powering the Pioneers to a 23-21 halftime lead.

 

Murdoch and Mason each had six points to lead Denver in the first half as the Pioneers shot 9-for-35 (25.7 percent) from the field. North Dakota State was led by Nicole Vigil’s five points while shooting 8-for-24 (33.3 percent) from the floor. The Bison had 13 turnovers to DU’s six in the opening stanza.

 

NDSU tied the game five times in the first nine minutes of the second half before they took a 39-38 lead on a Hodgson three with 10:12 remaining. Denver then used an 8-2 run to take a five-point 46-41 lead with 6:39 to play.

 

The Bison came within three four times in the final 5:23, but the Pioneers used free throws by senior Celena Otero (Aurora, Colo.), freshman Jenny Vaughan (Dundas, Ontario) and Murdoch to clinch their third straight victory.

 

DU improved to 9-for-22 (40.9 percent) from the field in the second half for a game total of 18-for-57 (31.6 percent). Meanwhile, the Bison slipped to 8-for-35 (22.9 percent) in the second half for 16-for-59 (27.1 percent) from the field in the game.

 

The back-and-forth game had seven lead changes and nine ties. The teams combined for just seven three-pointers, with two from Mason for DU and five by NDSU.

 

The Pioneers conclude their four-game homestand with a 4 p.m. tip-off against Montana on Wednesday, Dec. 17 in Hamilton Gymnasium.  Fans can catch the action online via Pioneer Vision and Live Stats.

 

 

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