by CRETE, Neb. – Deaundra Young (SR/Mims, FL) had a huge presence in the paint Wednesday night and led the College of Saint Mary basketball team past Doane College 58-53. Young finished with 21 points and 18 rebounds in the Great Plains Athletic Conference contest.
The Flames outscored Doane 38-18 in the paint and, for the first time this season, didn’t score any 3-pointers. CSM shot 38 percent on the night, while the Tigers shot 30 percent.
“We knew we had a big advantage in the paint and it was our plan to use it,” CSM Coach Jesse Flanagan said.
But the Flames weren’t able to capitalize on it until the second half. Doane led the game all but 19 seconds of the opening half and still led 41-38 after three quarters of play. But CSM outscored the home team 20-12 in the final frame to earn the win.
“Doane was double and triple-teaming Dee in the first half,” Flanagan said. “At halftime the coaches realized if we could flatten out our offense then they couldn’t doubleteam Dee. That opened everything else up. It was the deciding factor in the game.”
Besides Young’s 21 points, the Flames also got a big offensive night from Pilar Aldrich(Winnebago Tribe). She finished with 16 points, while teammate Peyton Hagen (SO/Bellevue, NE) chipped in eight.
Flanagan said another factor in the game was CSM’s defensive changes.
“Late in the game we kept switching between a 2-3 zone and man-to-man and it kept them off balance,” Flanagan said.
With the win, the Flames improved to 2-7 in the GPAC and 8-8 overall, while Doane fell to 2-7, 9-8. CSM returns to action Friday with a 2 p.m. game at Dakota Wesleyan University.
“I just like how we battled tonight,” Flanagan said. “We were down by 10 points at the half and we battled back. I was proud of the team.”
