March 28, 2008

2008 National Championship Game

South Dakota Looks to Cap Dream Season; NKU Has Been Hot Late

      Kearney, Neb. –  The 2008 NCAA Division II championship game between the University of South Dakota and Northern Kentucky University, slated for tomorrow night at the Health & Sports Center, will have plenty of story lines.

      On one hand, the 3^rd-ranked USD Coyotes (33-1) are trying to cap a "Dream Season." Not only is South Dakota leaving Division II after this year but long time head coach Chad Lavin is retiring. In addition, the 'Yotes have a senior laden team, led by twin sisters Jenna and Jeana Hoffman.

      Ironically, 50 years ago USD's men's basketball team won a national championship with a set of twins.

      Finally, South Dakota has won 31 games in a row and is trying to continue the dominance of the North Central Region in the Division II title game. North Dakota State (five), North Dakota (three) and South Dakota State (one) have previously won Division II women's basketball national titles with SDSU's coming, ironically, against NKU in 2003.

      In another strange twist of fate, South Dakota State won its national title in its final year of Division II.

      For the unranked Norse (27-8), a third trip to Division II's ultimate contest is a bit of a surprise.

      While NKU, led by veteran head coach Nancy Winstel, has been of the nation's best programs the past 10 or so years, the Norse lost five key seniors off last year's squad and were only the fourth seed in this year's Great Lakes Regional.

      In the first round of the Great Lakes, Northern Kentucky beat Indianapolis by just one point, 54-53. However, NKU rolled past No. 1 seed Drury the next night, 84-65, and have now won nine of its last 10 games.

      The Norse are used to seeing the nation's "heartland" in the finals as NKU beat NDSU in the 2000 title game and then lost to the Jackrabbits three years later.

      "To me, in all the years that I've coached, the road to the Division II national championship goes through the North Central Region," said Winstel, who is in her 25th year and has 547 wins. "This year is no different. Fortunately, a lot of those teams  have gone Division I; unfortunately for us, South Dakota didn't go last year."

      Led by seniors Angela Healy and Nicole Chiodi, along with Division I transfer Jessie Slack, Northern Kentucky's long and lean frames are the first thing the opposition worries about.

      "I like the way the play. They actually play a style that is similar to a couple in our league. If I had to pick one thing (that worries me), it's that the very long. Their length is something you don't see very often and that can very bothersome," said Lavin, who has 448 career wins. 

       USD has rode an athletic and skilled group to its first national championship appearance. A strong three point shooting team, the 'Yotes also don't turnover the ball over very often and have a unique offense that often throws the opposition for a loop.

      "South Dakota play an offensive style that is a little bit different then your basic systems. They run a five person out….all five players can put the ball on the floor and attack the basket," said Winstel. "They force you to do some things defensively you normally wouldn't do. That's a challenge for a lot of teams."

      In the Elite Eight, Hoffman is averaging 23.0 points per game and shooting 47 percent (7 of 15) from beyond the arc. Freshman Amber Hegge (Crofton) is at 11.5 ppg with the 'Yotes having committed only 20 turnovers in 450 minutes.

      For NKU, Slack (16.0 ppg) had led a balanced attack that features six players at five or more points per game. The Norse have also played strong defense this week, holding teams to 34 percent shooting, including a 9 of 29 effort from the three point line.

     A win Saturday would make Northern Kentucky just the fifth D2 school with multiple national titles in women's basketball. The others are UND, NDSU, Cal Poly Pomona and Delta State.