Feb. 20, 2010

Box Score | Quotes | Notes | Photo Gallery

ROCHESTER, Mich. - Freshman Bethany Watterworth scored 17 points to lead the way for the Golden Grizzlies as the Oakland University women's basketball team (15-12, 12-4 Summit League) used a big second half to upstage North Dakota State University (13-12, 8-7 Summit League) 70-56 Saturday afternoon at the O'Rena.

"I am really proud of our defensive effort and how our team really just held together," said head coach Beckie Francis. "We gave up the lead for a short minute it felt like and they just didn't back down and came roaring back. It was a great team win."

The Black and Gold struck first when sophomore Sharise Calhoun scored off a quick layup at 19:19 and from there, the Toledo, Ohio native would lead the way, scoring all 14 of her points in the first half, and OU would never lose their lead in the first 20 minutes. The Bison were always within striking distance, however, and Katie Birkel would score 15 points of her own to help cut the Oakland lead to three, 31-28 going into halftime.

The Bison took their first lead of the game at the 17:36 mark of the second half when Inger Hodgson buried a 3-pointer to put NDSU up 34-33, but OU gained the lead right back off a pair of Watterworth free throws at 17:13. NDSU took a three-point lead, 40-37, with 15:41 to play, but that would be as far ahead they would get, as OU took advantage of 53 percent second half shooting to pull their lead into double digits, 52-42, with 10:51 to go.

From there, the game was blown wide open and Oakland would go on to lead by as many as 19 points before sealing the 70-56 victory.

In addition to Watterworth and Calhoun's double-digit efforts, senior Melissa Jeltema scored 10 points and moved into eighth all-time in career scoring with 1,491 points, surpassing former standout Jessica Pike (2005-09). Senior Hanna Reising also scored nine points off the bench and freshman Victoria Lipscomb pulled down a team-best six rebounds.

The Bison were led by Birkel's 21 points, a game-high tally for both teams, and a 12-point effort by Ashley Samuelson. Oakland out-rebounded NDSU 35-25, including a 27-19 edge on the defensive boards, and committed fewer turnovers with 14 compared to North Dakota State's 17. OU also shot 51 percent from the floor for the game compared to NDSU's 42 percent.

The Golden Grizzlies will next square off in a rematch of last season's Summit League Tournament championship game when they take on South Dakota State on Monday, Feb. 22 for a 6:30 p.m. tip at the O'Rena. The game can be followed via All Access or Gametracker at www.ougrizzlies.com.

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