ST. PETER, Minn. – The No. 12-ranked Gustavus women’s basketball team is back home tonight for a non-conference game against UW-River Falls, starting at 7 p.m. The Gusties enter the contest with a 3-0 record, while the Falcons are 3-1.
LIVE STATS | WATCH LIVE | GUSTAVUS GAME NOTES
The Series: Tonight’s game marks the 11th all-time meeting between Gustavus and UW-River Falls with the series tied 5-5. The two teams met last season in River Falls, Wis. as the Gusties won 60-56. Mikayla Miller led all scorers with 23 points, including nine points from the free throw line, and three steals. Miranda Rice also reached double figures with 10 points and added six rebounds. Justine Lee led the Gusties down on the blocks with a career-high seven rebounds.
The first quarter was a true back and forth battle with five lead changes and three ties, resulting in a 22-18 lead for the Falcons after the first 10 minutes. The Gusties defense buckled down in the second quarter, allowing only eight points, while the offense put up 14 points for a 32-30 lead at halftime.
The third quarter went back in favor of the Falcons as they outscored the Gusties 13-9 for a 43-41 advantage after 30 minutes of play. But Gustavus owned the fourth quarter as it went on a 12-4 run for a 53-45 advantage at the 6:09 mark. UW-River Falls was able to cut the deficit to two points on three occasions, but was never able to tie the score or regain the lead. With 14 seconds remaining in the game, Rice made the play of the night as she blocked a layup, which would have tied the game. Instead, the block set up a free throw on the other end of the court and the Gusties were able to escape with a victory.
Gustavus shot 32.7 percent from the field and had 10 steals. Both teams had 35 rebounds.
Scouting the Falcons: UW-River Falls started the season with three victories before falling to Bethel 67-55 last Tuesday. The Falcons’ three wins came against Carleton (58-52), St. Olaf (63-46), and St. Norbert (55-37). After four games Taylor Karge leads the team with 14.0 points and 6.8 rebounds per game. Karge is a 49 percent shooter and has eight blocks this season. Brynn Liljander also averages double figures with 12.3 points per game. Liljander is a 35.7 percent shooter and is the top free-throw shooter at 92.3 percent. As a team, the Falcons are strong defensively allowing opponents 50.5 points per game and a 31.6 field goal percentage.