Wolves "Hammer" Golden Bears

January 25, 2004

Aberdeen, S.D. - After watching the women's team defeat conference powerhouse Concordia-St. Paul, the men knew that it was their turn to deliver a strong performance.

A strong performance is what the fans in Wachs would recieve. While the team put forth a strong team effort, one Wolf would stand in front of the pack. Sophomore Matt Hammer turned in a performance that will not soon be forgotten.

Hammer turned in a game that included leading the team in rebounding (8 rebounds) and scorching the Bears for 33 points on 11 of 14 shooting. If Hammer felt in a rhythm with his jumpers, he had no problem moving that shooter's touch to the free throw line where he went 10 for 10 from the charity stripe.

To help the cause, Senior Steve Smiley added seven assists. Junior Dustin Hjelmeland added 11 points off of the bench. Finally, Aaron Buscak added 11 points and five rebounds (four offensive).

The first half unfolded with neither team really able to get an advantage in the contest. The first half would end with the the Golden Bears holding on to a 33-32 lead over the Wolves. The Wolves would be kept in the game by Junior Dustin Hjelmeland and Sophomore Matt Hammer who led the Wolves going into halftime with a combined 21 points.

Coming out for the second half it was clear that the Wolves needed to up their level of play if they wanted to emerge victorious. That is exaclty what they did.

On the defensive end, Northern contested shots better and pressure CSP into tough shots causing 10 second half turnovers and limiting the Bears to shooting only 37.0 percent from the field.

With NSU tightening up their defense, on the offensive end Hammer would start pounding away at CSP's defense. In the second half, Hammer would shoot a staggering six of six from the field, a perfect eight of eight from the free throw line, and hand out four assists to teammates. However, the most memorable moment of the evening (and the season thus far) came on one of Hammer's rebounds and shots. With 8:54 remaining Adam Grant tossed up an errant three-pointer. As the ball bounced off of the rim Hammer soared through the air and slammed the ball back. The dunk immediately brought the arena to life and the fans reached a peak of excitement and energy. Hammer's dunk would cap off an 11-2 Wolves rampage.

Concordia was led by Justin Vandenberg, Ray Dawson, and Maurice Lewers all contributing 14 points. Lewers and Vandenberg would also lead the squad with six rebounds each.

The Wolves are off until they travel to Wayne State and SW Minnesota State this upcoming weekend.

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