Feb. 9, 2001

Northern State cruised to a 82-63 victory at Bemidji State Friday night in a Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference matchup.

The Wolves proved from the outset they weren't looking ahead to Saturday's showdown at defending conference champion Minnesota-Duluth by taking control of Friday's game in the first half and never looking back. NSU led 48-27 at the break and coasted the rest of the way in what was always a comfortable double-digit margin in the second stanza.

Senior forward Natalie Braun (Warner) led the Wolves in scoring with 14 points to go with five rebounds. Junior point guard Holly Schaunaman (Leola) chipped in 12 points to go with a game-high four steals, while senior forward Memory Johannsen (Tolstoy) rounded out NSU's double-digit scorers with 11 points. Junior reserve guard Sara Hemquist (Baxter, Minn.) led the team in rebounding with six boards. BSU was led by Leah Laurich's 24 points.

NSU shot over 51 percent, while holding BSU to under 39 percent shooting in the decisive first half.