SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – A tough shooting day from the floor kept the Minnesota State women's basketball team (24-7, 18-4 NSIC) from winning its second NSIC Tournament Title Tuesday night. The Mavericks dropped its second game in a row against No. 11 Concordia-St. Paul (29-2, 20-2 NSIC), 92-73.
 
Natalie Bremer scored 19 points in the loss. She was one of two Mavericks to make the All-Tournament Team. Junior forward Ava Stier was also named to the All-NSIC Tournament Team.
 
NSIC Defensive Player of the Year Lindsey Becher won the NSIC Tournament's Most Outstanding Player for Concordia-St. Paul. She ended the game with 25 points, 11 rebounds, five assists and four blocks on the way to the title.
 
Becher opened the game up with a jumper from the wing, an and-one layup and another score inside to give the Golden Bears an early 7-0 lead. Minnesota State started 0-4 from the field before Destinee Bursch put the team on the board with a tip-in layup. Bremer made a layup after a steal from Elisabeth Gadient, then she made another after a second steal from the freshman guard to make it a one-point game. A Bursch free throw tied the game, then, after a media timeout, Bremer and Becher traded layups. Mallory Czinano came up with a huge offensive board and dished it out to Mackenzie Schweim, who sank a three to give MSU a 12-9 lead with 4:08 left in the first quarter.
 
After two free throws for the Golden Bears made it a one-point game, junior point guard Hannah Herzig hit a three in transition and a layup inside to put the Mavericks up by six. First Team All-Conference guard Lydia Haack made a short corner jumper before Bursch found Schweim cutting to the rim for a strong layup inside. CSP went on a 6-0 run to tie the game back up at 19 a-piece, but Gadient made a contested layup at the last second to give Minnesota State a 21-19 lead headed into the second quarter.
 
On defense, freshman Lucy Leininger intercepted a Golden Bear pass, and on the other end, she made a turnaround jumper to open the second. Julia Bengston for Concordia connected from deep to keep it a one-point game, then the teams traded the lead back and forth with makes at the line until Rhyan Holmgren put the Mavericks up 29-26 with 6:11 to play in the half. The Golden Bears made a couple of quick buckets to snatch the lead right back heading into the second media timeout.
 
Schweim sunk a deep three out of the break to swing momentum back the Mavericks' way, but free throw makes from Becher notched up the score 32-32. Those makes at the line started an 8-0 run that gave the Golden Bears a six-point lead with 2:40 left in the first half. Stier ended the run with two at the charity stripe, then two more from Herzig made it a two-point game. Concordia fended off the Mavericks the remainder of the first half with a couple of threes, but a three-point make and a layup from Bremer made the score 45-41 headed into the locker room.
 
At halftime, Minnesota State was only shooting 37.1% from the field. Despite the shooting struggles, the Mavericks made four three-pointers in the first half and shot 11-12 from the free throw line. MSU forced 15 Golden Bear turnovers and converted those extra possessions into 19 points. The Maverick bench scored 10 points in the first half.
 
Bremer led with 11 points in the first half. Schweim, with two three-point makes, ended the half with eight points. Gadient scored six and had four steals on defense off the bench. Herzig had seven points, two assists and two steals in the first half.  
 
Concordia shot 51.6% from the field in the first half and had three makes from beyond the arc. The Golden Bears dominated the boards in the first two quarters, outrebounding the Mavericks 27-11. Becher led all scorers with 15 points and five boards at the half. Haack ended the half with nine points and four assists.
 
Bursch quickly kicked off the second half with a banked-in floater in the paint, but the Golden Bears came out with full-court pressure and scored two fast buckets in response, which forced a 30-second timeout from the Maverick bench. Herzig dove on the floor to corral a steal, dished it to Schweim, who found Bursch in the lane for two more. The two teams traded baskets until Concordia took an eight-point lead with 5:44 left to play in the third quarter.
 
Out of the media timeout, both Minnesota State and Concordia traded baskets, but a three-pointer from Ashley Schuelke gave the Golden Bears a 12-point lead. CSP led 69-53 through three quarters.
 
Leininger had a steal and score to start the fourth quarter, but scores from Becher and Schuelke extended the Golden Bear lead and another score for CSP put the team up 20 with 6:54 left in regulation. Leininger cut into the Bears' lead with a corner three with 5:26 remaining in regulation, which was one of three the Mavericks hit in an attempt to cut into the deficit. Despite a great effort down the stretch, the Golden Bears secured their fifth NSIC Tournament Championship, 92-73.
 
The Mavericks struggled to put the ball in the hoop. The team shot 33.8% from the field (24-71 FG), 35% from deep (7-20 3P) and went 18-28 from the charity stripe (64.3% FT). MSU was outrebounded by 12 and had 10 fewer assists than CSP.
Bremer scored 19 points on 7-16 shooting from the field. She had one steal and made two three-pointers. Both Schweim and Leininger ended with 10 points. Leininger ended with four steals, tied for the team lead with Gadient.
 
The Golden Bears shot 52.5% from the field and made six threes in the NSIC Tournament Championship win. CSP dominated the boards, outrebounding the Mavericks 46-34. Becher ended with 25 points on 9-12 shooting, 11 rebounds, five assists, four blocks and one steal. Lauren Wilson ended with 16 points and 12 rebounds off the bench. Haack scored 15 points and had eight assists, three steals and four rebounds. Schuelke had 12 points. Both Haack and Wilson made the All-Tournament Team along with Becher.
 
Now, Minnesota State waits to see where it will land in the NCAA Regional Rankings. The third edition of the rankings releases tomorrow, March 5, but that list does not include games from Monday or Tuesday. Last week, the Mavericks were ranked fifth in the Central Region. The Sunday Selection Show will be on March 9 at 9:30 CDT.