DULUTH, Minn.—The 2022-23 season has been a historic one for the Southern Nazarene Crimson Storm women's basketball team. For the first time, the Crimson Storm claimed the Great American Conference regular season title with a 21-1 record, the second-best mark in GAC history.
Last weekend in Shawnee, SNU added to their collection of hardware, winning all three games in the GAC Tournament by double-digits to claim the program's second GAC tournament title.
Now, the Crimson Storm (27-4) turns its attention to the NCAA Central Region Tournament, hosted by University of Minnesota-Duluth. The Storm, who enter the tournament No. 23 in the D2SIDA poll, are the No. 8 seed in the region and play the host school at 5 p.m. on Friday. You can watch the game on the NSIC Network and listen to Luke McConnell on Crossover Radio Sports.
The Crimson Storm have risen to prominence in the conference and nationally thanks to their stingy defense. SNU comes into Friday's game with the No. 26 scoring defense in the NCAA, allowing just 57.3 points per game this season. In the GAC tournament, the Crimson Storm locked down Oklahoma Baptist and Harding in the semifinals and final, allowing just 45 and 46 points, respectively. The 46 points allowed in the title game to the Bisons were the fewest allowed in a title game in GAC history.
It's hard for the opponents to score on the Storm due to the presence of the nation's leading shot-blocker,
Hannah Giddey. The junior has racked up 92 total blocks this season and earned GAC Defensive Player of the Year honors for her efforts. Senior
Cassandra Awatt leads the team in steals with 67, which is good for No. 37 in the national rankings. Another key statistic for SNU is a +6.5 rebounding margin. That number puts the Crimson Storm 21st in the nation in that category, and that will be important to maintain in a tough Central Region.
Southern Nazarene's only other previous NCAA experience came back in 2021, when a COVID-altered schedule and tournament put the Storm and the GAC as a whole in the South Central Region with the Lone Star Conference. The Storm fell in the opening round to Texas A&M-Commerce, 70-64.
The Bulldogs of Minnesota-Duluth are in the NCAA tournament for the fifth consecutive year, but the first time as a host and No. 1 seed in the Central Region. The Bulldogs (27-3) are ranked No. 4 in the D2SIDA poll and No. 6 in the NABC coaches poll and boast one of the best players in the nation in senior forward Brooke Olson.
The list of accolades for Olson is long. The four-time defending NSIC North Player of the Year is sixth in the nation in points per game, scoring 22.1 points per game on 56 percent shooting. She also averages seven rebounds per game for Bulldogs, who led the NSIC in scoring defense (55.9 points per game allowed) and field-goal percentage defense (36.6 percent) while ranking fourth in the nation in field goal percentage themselves (47.7 percent shooting).
The Bulldogs are a veteran team with six seniors on the roster, including all five starters. They have plenty of experience on this stage and are looking to advance to their first Elite Eight.
The Crimson Storm will be looking to be the first Cinderella of the 2023 tournament. SNU has lived up to expectations all season long, but here in Duluth, there are very few. In the freezing temperatures, surrounded by 10-foot high snow drifts, Southern Nazarene will try to continue this season to remember.
