D3 WBB Daily: UW-La Crosse pulls off the upset, Loras' dramatic win, Knudsen scores 2,000th point in key victory for Millikin
Wednesday night action is always fun in the world of D3 women’s hoops, as plenty of Top 25 teams are in action, which naturally gives way to plenty of potential upsets, and high-profile conference showdowns. The fact that the MIAA, NEWMAC, WIAC, MIAC, CCIW, and ARC play their conference schedules on Wednesdays only fuels the excitement. All you had to do was look at the crowds of 1,000+ in Holland, Michigan and Decatur, Illinois last night to know that this is the real deal. The intensity of these matchups are evident, with conference title races unfolding in the final days of January.
As usual, “Tipping Off” includes some of my thoughts and storylines from last night’s games, followed by “Fast Breaks”, which includes notable trends, individual performances, and results. And finally, “Looking Ahead” is a quick glance at today’s slate of games (though the Thursday slate is pretty small, confined to a couple of leagues across the country).
Tipping Off
Down goes #4 UW-Whitewater
Pictured: UW-La Crosse celebrates its upset win on Wednesday (Photo by Jim Lund/UW-La Crosse Athletics Department/uwlathletics.com)
There was the faintest possibility it seemed, as UW-Whitewater rolled through tough competition—winning at Illinois Wesleyan, sending Chicago home with an 11-point loss, beating Messiah by 26 in Puerto Rico—that the Warhawks would roll through WIAC play with an unblemished record. Or surely, at least the first half of league play, right? Wrong. UW-La Crosse had other plans when the Eagles welcomed the Warhawks to Mitchell Hall Gymnasium last night, emerging with a surprising 77-66 victory. But is it really all that surprising? After all, it is the WIAC, and we come to expect these kinds of things from this league.
Whitewater entered this matchup with plenty of momentum, but Moran Lonning, in her first year at the helm of the UWL program, delivered an exceptional game plan that resulted in a superb perimeter defensive performance from the Eagles. Whitewater shot just 4-of-21 from beyond the arc, unable to gain separation in that way. And while Aleah Grundahl and Kacie Carollo had 27 and 25 points, respectively, the rest of the starting lineup had just 10. Only four points came from the bench. That slowed the Warhawks down, as Grundahl and Carollo had their way offensively, but everyone else was held at bay. Meanwhile, UWL had four in double figures, led by Lauryn Milne’s 22-point, 11-rebound double-double. After three straight losses, this was a win that UWL very much needed. The Eagles outscored UWW 23-15 in the 4th quarter, sealing their first win over the Warhawks at home since Dec. 7, 2011.
Knudsen scores 2,000th career point in key Top 25 win for Millikin
Pictured: Millikin’s Elyce Knudsen (photo courtesy of the Millikin Athletics Department)
In perhaps #16 Millikin’s most pivotal home game of the season, a CCIW tilt against the fast-paced, aggressive, hard-nosed, 11th-ranked Illinois Wesleyan Titans, Elyce Knudsen turned in a performance to remember. Exactly seven days after Knudsen led Millikin’s charge to a 93-91 win at IWU, she again led a second-half scoring surge against the Titans, as Millikin pulled away for a 94-77 victory, tying with IWU for first-place in the league. And Knudsen joined the career 2,000-point club in the process, shooting 11-of-22 from the field while scoring 29 points, 20 of which came in the second half. She needs just 10 points to become Millikin’s all-time leading scorer.
Here’s the interesting part. She still has another year of eligibility remaining, as her freshman year was played during the infamous 2020-21 season. So if she does indeed return in 2024-25, Knudsen has a real possibility of breaking the all-time NCAA D-III scoring record of 3,171 points, set by Buena Vista’s Jeannie Demers in 1987. Something to keep an eye on! Knudsen was terrific for Millikin when the Big Blue needed it most last night. IWU struggled to stop her, and that, along with winning the rebounding battle by +16, lifted Millikin to its 16th victory of the season.
Haslow the hero for Loras in dramatic finish
Pictured: Loras’ Madison Haslow (photo courtesy of the Loras Athletics Department)
Region 9 is deep from top to bottom, and #21 Loras needs all the wins it can get in ARC play in order to be in contention for a Pool C bid. The difference of a single spot in the regional rankings could be the difference between playing in March or not, and in a challenging league that includes Wartburg, Loras continues gaining momentum. The Duhawks were tied with Coe, 58-58, with four seconds left in last night’s ARC duel, when an inbounds pass went to Madison Haslow. With the crowd looking on in anticipation, the fifth-year senior drove from the top of the key to the lane, and laid the ball off the glass in clutch fashion as she was fouled with just 0.3 seconds on the clock. The game-winning layup from Haslow gave Loras a well-earned, and much-needed, 60-58 win over a Coe team that continues to challenge the ARC’s best. Loras outscored Coe 10-4 over the final five minutes and won its 11th straight. The Duhawks are playing every bit like an NCAA Tournament team right now.
Fast Breaks
Whitewater wasn’t the only nationally-ranked WIAC team to fall. #18 UW-Oshkosh, the only other ranked team in the league, also lost last night, as UW-Eau Claire relied on its starting five and won at home, 61-52. You just never know in the WIAC!
Congratulations to Wartburg’s Macy Harris and Wisconsin Lutheran’s Sam Leisemann who joined the career 1,000-point club with their performances on Wednesday night.
Edgewood’s Vivian Guerrero became the third player in program history to notch a triple-double, as she tallied 10 points, 13 rebounds, 10 assists in the 87-39 win over Dominican.
#20 DeSales recorded yet another huge second-half scoring run, staying undefeated in the MAC Freedom. The Bulldogs trailed Misericordia, 25-23, at the half, but outscored their opposition 47-13 over the final two quarters. Yes, you read that right. Had you just looked at the final score of DeSales, 70, Misericordia, 38, you probably would’ve never guessed the first half played out in the way it did.
Calvin won at Trine for the first time since Jan. 6, 2015, opening the game on a 21-4 run and winning 63-51. The Knights are now in second place in the MIAA.
Springfield took down a nationally-ranked opponent for the third straight season, defeating #17 Smith, 70-68, in a key NEWMAC road win. Claire Finney, in her first collegiate season, had 19 points for the Pride.
#8 Catholic kept the program’s longest winning streak intact at Susquehanna, despite being met with an upset bid early on. Susquehanna led 31-30 at halftime, but Catholic opened the 3rd quarter on a 7-0 run, and earned a 69-63 victory. The Cardinals have now won 18 straight.
UW-Platteville beat UW-Stevens Point on the road, 68-58, marking the first time since the WIAC went to 7 teams that the Pioneers have finished the first half of conference play above .500 (4-3).
Looking Ahead
Muhlenberg at Dickinson, 6:00 pm ET
McDaniel at #10 Johns Hopkins, 6:00 pm ET
#14 Mary Hardin-Baylor at ETBU, 6:30 pm ET