DULUTH, Minn. – Minnesota State women's basketball (17-4, 14-1 NSIC) defeated Minnesota Duluth (12-7, 9-6 NSIC) on the Bulldogs' home floor, 81-63. The Mavericks extend their winning streak to 15 games and breaks a nine-game losing streak against UMD. Minnesota State benefitted from productive second and third quarters, shooting an excellent 24-40 in those quarters and outscoring the Bulldogs 58-29 in that stretch.

A jumper from Destinee Bursch started the scoring, but Minnesota Duluth responded a jumper of its own. The two teams traded buckets back-and-forth until Ella Gilbertson hit a three-pointer for UMD and Abby Johnson hit a two-point jumper to put the Bulldogs up 10-5. Hannah Herzig hit a three with 1:48 remaining in the quarter. Emily Russo made an and-one layup to give MSU the lead 13-12, but the Bulldogs made a three-pointer late in the quarter to give UMD a 15-13 after the first quarter.

An Emily Herzberg jumper tied the game early in the second quarter, but Taya Hakamaki made a jumper to put the Bulldogs back up, 17-15. The Mavericks then went on a 9-0 run, where the team shot 4-4 from the field and had two steals that lead to easy points. After a Natalie Bremer jumper gave the Mavericks a seven-point lead, the Bulldogs scored a three and a two-pointer to bring the Minnesota State lead to two, 26-24. A steal by Herzig, passed up to a streaking Bremer led to an easy fast break score to cap off an 8-0 run for MSU. Taytum Rhoades would make four free throws to make the score 36-28, but Batt would score an and-one layup on the other end to increase the MSU lead by nine. Herzberg would go on to swish a three-pointer with just over a minute remaining in the quarter to put the Mavericks up by double-digits, but a pair of Bulldog free throws would lead to a halftime score of 42-33.

Minnesota State shot 18-36 from the field in the first half, making 4-11 from beyond the arc and just 2-6 from the free throw line. The Mavericks and Bulldogs matched each other in rebounds, each team grabbing 14 boards in the first half. MSU had four steals and forced 12 turnovers in the first half, scoring 18 points off those turnovers.

Bremer ended the first half with 10 points on 5-5 field goal shooting and two rebounds. Herzberg scored eight points in the first half and finished with three rebounds and a steal. Joey Batt had six points and three rebounds in the first half.

Minnesota Duluth shot 9-22 in the first half, including 3-10 from three and 12-17 from the free throw line. The Bulldogs dished out seven assists in the first half. Rhoades ended with eight first half points for UMD. Hakamaki had seven points in the first half.

A pair of jumpers for the Bulldogs would open scoring in the second half to bring the MSU lead to five. Then, the Mavericks went on a 20-5 over the next five minutes to pull away from Minnesota Duluth. During that stretch, Minnesota State shot 7-9 from the floor and 2-2 from three-point range. The team also had three steals that resulted in points on the offensive end. The run was capped off by a three-pointer from Herzberg, which put the Mavericks up by 20, 62-42. Minnesota State controlled the rest of the quarter, closing out the third quarter with the score sitting at 71-44. MSU outscored UMD in the third quarter 29-11.

Bursch got the scoring started in the final quarter, hitting a jumper to put the Mavericks up 73-44. Minnesota Duluth went on an 11-4 run, making 4-6 of its field goal attempts, but it was too little too late, as Minnesota State had already extended its lead far enough. The Bulldogs would end up making some buckets down the stretch, but the verdict was already decided upon. The Mavericks closed out the Bulldogs, winning 81-63.

The Mavericks ended up shooting 33-68 from the field (48.5% FG) against UMD. The team shot 7-19 from deep (37% 3PT) and 8-12 from the free throw line (67% FT). The Mavericks ended up grabbing 36 rebounds, including 14 off the offensive glass. Minnesota State scored 21 bench points, 17 second chance points and matched Minnesota Duluth's 26 points in the paint. MSU forced 20 Bulldog turnovers and had 11 steals, scoring 28 points off turnovers, doubling UMD's total.

Minnesota State had six players in double-digits. Bremer was the Mavericks' leading scorer, finishing with 16 points, four rebounds, two steals and a block. Herzberg had 13 points, seven rebounds, three assists and shot 2-4 from three. Bursch ended with 11 points. Batt and Russo each had 10 points.

Minnesota Duluth shot 20-52 (38.5% FG) against the Mavericks, making 5-21 (24%) from beyond the arc and 18-26 (69% FT) from the charity stripe. The Bulldogs grabbed 29 rebounds and dished out 12 assists, two more than Minnesota State. Grancia was the Bulldogs' leading scorer against MSU, finishing with 13 points and seven rebounds. Hakamaki ended with 12 points, two rebounds, two assists and six turnovers.

"[Natalie Bremer] cannot be overlooked on any scouting report, because, man, you can't look past that kid," said Mavericks head coach Emilee Thiesse. "She is so deadly in so many areas for us. On defense, she has the ability to disrupt passing lanes, she makes plays for us on defense that don't always make the stat sheet and that is so valuable."

Minnesota State is back on the road this weekend, traveling to play Southwest Minnesota State (13-7, 11-3 NSIC) and Sioux Falls (7-11, 5-9 NSIC). The Mavericks play the Mustangs on Friday, Feb. 2, at 5:30 p.m. at the R/A Facility in Marshall, Minn. Minnesota State will play the Cougars on Saturday, Feb. 3 at 3:30 p.m. at the Stewart Center. The Mavericks have won three-straight against SMSU and lead the all-time series 48-23. Despite winning six-straight against Sioux Falls, the all-time series lead between the Mavericks and Cougars is tied, 11-11.