Northwestern gets its turn against Bellevue
By Jerry Giese, Journal sports writer | Posted: Monday, March 17, 2008
POINT LOOKOUT, Mo. -- Blame the schedule makers.
Three of Northwest Iowa's four NAIA Division II men's basketball programs had the oppportunity to play Bellevue University this season.
Dordt was a 76-57 winner over Bellevue on Nov. 24 at the Defender Gold Classic in Sioux Center. Bellevue returned to Siouxland shortly after Christmas for the Briar Cliff Holiday Tournament, falling to Morningside 73-65 on Dec. 28, then edged Briar Cliff 75-72 one day later.
Northwestern (30-4) will get its crack against the top-seeded Bruins (32-3) at 6 o'clock tonight in the first of two semifinal games in the NAIA Division II National Championships at Keeter Gymnasium on the College of the Ozarks campus. Second-seeded MidAmerica Nazarene (31-4) will face 11th-seeded Oregon Tech (29-6) in the 8 p.m. semifinal.
The Red Raiders of Coach Kris Korver, who are in the Final Four for the second straight year, are seeded fifth. Overall, it's Northwestern's fifth Final Four appearance.
Bellevue, the first top seed to make the semifinals for the first time since 2003, is in the Final Four for only the second time.
Northwestern played a pair of cliffhangers in the first two rounds. Chad Schuiteman, a 6-6 senior forward from Sioux Center, Iowa, scored 22 points and grabbed 12 rebounds in Thursday's 97-90 first-round win over Minot State. He then provided 24 points, 13 rebounds and a game-winning free throw in an 86-85 overtime win over Oklahoma Wesleyan on Friday.
Curt Schilling, a 6-4 senior forward from Ellsworth, Minn., scored 20 points while leading Northwestern to a 96-70 quarterfinal win over Northwood (Fla.).
Schilling, the Great Plains Athletic Conference scoring champion, leads Northwestern with a 19.6 scoring average. Schuiteman, who recorded 13 points and 14 rebounds in the quarterfinals, averages 14.7 points and 11.1 rebounds.
Schuiteman and Schilling, who have tallied 2,191 and 2,077 points, respectively, in their careers, have had fine support in the scoring department throughout the tournament. Kale Wiertzema (13.2 ppg), a 6-4 junior guard, has averaged 12 points.
Northwestern's bench has also been sharp. Andrew Stimson (9.1 ppg), a 6-1 junior guard, scored 20 points in the win over Minot State and has reached double-figure scoring in each of the three games.
Mark DeYounge (9.6 ppg), a 6-5 senior forward, has averaged 12 points in the tournament. Ben Brown (6.5 ppg), a 6-2 sophomore guard from Orange City, Iowa, has scored at a 9.3 clip in the three wins for a squad that enters tonight's game averaging 87.6 points.
Bellevue had to hang on to win a pair of games following its 111-52 opening-round rout of St. Joseph (Vt.) last Wednesday.
The Bruins edged 16th-seeded Aquinas (Mich.) 65-61 in Friday's second round, then hung on for a 73-69 quarterfinal win over ninth-seeded Bethel Saturday afternoon.
John Gray, a 6-3 senior guard, has averaged 15 points in the tournament for Bellevue, the Midlands Collegiate Athletic Conference regular-season and tournament champion.
Gray averages 13 points while Klaye Rowe, a 6-5 senior forward, scores at a 15.7 clip.
Tuesday night's championship game will start at 8:30. Should Northwestern and MidAmerica Nazarene each record victories tonight, they'll meet for the second time this season.
MidAmerica Nazarene was ranked first when it posted an 87-75 win over Northwestern on Nov. 24 during the Taco John's/Subway Classic at Orange City.
MidAmerica Nazarene and Bellevue didn't meet in the regular season.
Bellevue's only other loss came on Feb. 2 when College of the Ozarks posted a 72-60 win at Keeter Gymnasium.
Three of Northwest Iowa's four NAIA Division II men's basketball programs had the oppportunity to play Bellevue University this season.
Dordt was a 76-57 winner over Bellevue on Nov. 24 at the Defender Gold Classic in Sioux Center. Bellevue returned to Siouxland shortly after Christmas for the Briar Cliff Holiday Tournament, falling to Morningside 73-65 on Dec. 28, then edged Briar Cliff 75-72 one day later.
Northwestern (30-4) will get its crack against the top-seeded Bruins (32-3) at 6 o'clock tonight in the first of two semifinal games in the NAIA Division II National Championships at Keeter Gymnasium on the College of the Ozarks campus. Second-seeded MidAmerica Nazarene (31-4) will face 11th-seeded Oregon Tech (29-6) in the 8 p.m. semifinal.
The Red Raiders of Coach Kris Korver, who are in the Final Four for the second straight year, are seeded fifth. Overall, it's Northwestern's fifth Final Four appearance.
Bellevue, the first top seed to make the semifinals for the first time since 2003, is in the Final Four for only the second time.
Northwestern played a pair of cliffhangers in the first two rounds. Chad Schuiteman, a 6-6 senior forward from Sioux Center, Iowa, scored 22 points and grabbed 12 rebounds in Thursday's 97-90 first-round win over Minot State. He then provided 24 points, 13 rebounds and a game-winning free throw in an 86-85 overtime win over Oklahoma Wesleyan on Friday.
Curt Schilling, a 6-4 senior forward from Ellsworth, Minn., scored 20 points while leading Northwestern to a 96-70 quarterfinal win over Northwood (Fla.).
Schilling, the Great Plains Athletic Conference scoring champion, leads Northwestern with a 19.6 scoring average. Schuiteman, who recorded 13 points and 14 rebounds in the quarterfinals, averages 14.7 points and 11.1 rebounds.
Schuiteman and Schilling, who have tallied 2,191 and 2,077 points, respectively, in their careers, have had fine support in the scoring department throughout the tournament. Kale Wiertzema (13.2 ppg), a 6-4 junior guard, has averaged 12 points.
Northwestern's bench has also been sharp. Andrew Stimson (9.1 ppg), a 6-1 junior guard, scored 20 points in the win over Minot State and has reached double-figure scoring in each of the three games.
Mark DeYounge (9.6 ppg), a 6-5 senior forward, has averaged 12 points in the tournament. Ben Brown (6.5 ppg), a 6-2 sophomore guard from Orange City, Iowa, has scored at a 9.3 clip in the three wins for a squad that enters tonight's game averaging 87.6 points.
Bellevue had to hang on to win a pair of games following its 111-52 opening-round rout of St. Joseph (Vt.) last Wednesday.
The Bruins edged 16th-seeded Aquinas (Mich.) 65-61 in Friday's second round, then hung on for a 73-69 quarterfinal win over ninth-seeded Bethel Saturday afternoon.
John Gray, a 6-3 senior guard, has averaged 15 points in the tournament for Bellevue, the Midlands Collegiate Athletic Conference regular-season and tournament champion.
Gray averages 13 points while Klaye Rowe, a 6-5 senior forward, scores at a 15.7 clip.
Tuesday night's championship game will start at 8:30. Should Northwestern and MidAmerica Nazarene each record victories tonight, they'll meet for the second time this season.
MidAmerica Nazarene was ranked first when it posted an 87-75 win over Northwestern on Nov. 24 during the Taco John's/Subway Classic at Orange City.
MidAmerica Nazarene and Bellevue didn't meet in the regular season.
Bellevue's only other loss came on Feb. 2 when College of the Ozarks posted a 72-60 win at Keeter Gymnasium.
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