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Seniors lead Tommies to 75-68 victory at NIU
11/10/2024 3:29:00 PM | Women's Basketball
ST. PAUL, MINN. - The University of St. Thomas women's basketball team is 3-0 for the first time in the Division I era.
It's true. Fueled by strong performances from Jade Hill (Minneapolis, Minn. / South) and Jo Langbehn (Elk River, Minn. / Elk River), the Tommies won their third consecutive game to open the 2024-25 season, downing Northern Illinois University 75-68 in DeKalb, Illinois. Hill scored 21 in St. Thomas' victory, including 18 in the second half, while Langbehn added 19, leading the Tommies to a 3-0 record to open their fourth Division I season. Junior guard Amber Scalia (Stillwater, Minn. / Stillwater) also tied the DI era record for assists in a game with nine Sunday afternoon.
RECAP:
Basically, everything went right for the Tommies through the first quarter, as they raced out to an 12-1 lead early in the opening 10 minutes of play. St. Thomas was unstoppable from three-point range, as Faith Feuerbach (Sycamore, Ill. / Sycamore). Sammy Opichka (Green Bay, Wis. / Notre Dame Academy), Jordyn Lamker (Maple Grove, Minn. / Maple Grove) and Scalia all scored from beyond the arc in the first quarter. In fact, St. Thomas went 5-8 from three and 8-14 from the floor overall, while the Tommies defense held NIU to just 10 first quarter points on four baskets.
With a 22-10 lead after the first 10 minutes of play, St. Thomas continued to extend its lead on the second. The Tommies led by as many as 13 points, but the Huskies hung around, slowly chipping away at St. Thomas' advantage. By halftime, NIU whittled St. Thomas' lead to 35-27, and the Huskies scored the first four points of the third quarter, cutting the Tommies lead to 35-31.
Langbehn and Hill worked to keep St. Thomas in the lead, but the roles were officially reversed. NIU outscored the Tommies 27-19 in the third quarter alone, but St. Thomas did just enough to work a 54-54 draw as time expired, as Scalia found Alyssa Sand (Albany, Minn. / Albany) under the basket to tie things up as time expired. That ignited something in Hill and the Tommies offense. The senior guard scored 18 of her team-leading 21 points in the second half, including 11 in the fourth quarter alone, to spur St. Thomas to victory. Back-to-back layups from Langbehn and Hill broke two early ties, and the senior duo came up with several clutch baskets throughout the final 10 minutes of play. Scalia too played a role in the Tommies impressive victory, coming up with a clutch steal and going 4-4 from the charity stripe to secure a 73-68 advantage for St. Thomas with 1:29 left to play.
In the end, it was Hill who secured the victory for the Tommies. With two seconds left in the game, Hill was fouled and sent to the free throw line, converting both to secure the 75-69 victory for St. Thomas.
TOP TOMMIES
- Jade Hill (Minneapolis, Minn. / South) led St. Thomas in scoring for the second time this season, tallying 21 points on 8-17 shooting, with one assists and one steal. Of her 21 points, Hill scored 18 in the second half and 11 in the fourth quarter, securing victory for the Tommies by converting two free throws at the end of the regulation.
- Jo Langbehn (Elk River, Minn. / Elk River) added 19 points on a 9-13 shooting day and pulled in seven rebounds.
- Amber Scalia (Stillwater, Minn. / Stillwater) closed the game with 11 points and a career-high nine assists in the victory, while Sammy Opichka (Green Bay, Wis. / Notre Dame Academy) led the team with eight rebounds and four steals.
UP NEXT
St. Thomas will put its perfect record to the test on Thursday, as the Tommies travel to Ames, Iowa to take on Iowa State University in a rematch from 2023-24. Tip off is scheduled for 6:30 p.m.
