GRAND FORKS, N.D. - With a 104-54 win over Houston Baptist, the University of North Dakota women's basketball team captured its sixth straight win - fourth in the Great West - and helped head coach Gene Roebuck reach a milestone 600 career wins at the helm of the Fighting Sioux.

In front of the over 2,080 fans in attendance at the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center, Roebuck was surprised by a special postgame presentation at half court to commemorate his achievement. He currently ranks in the top 20 among the NCAA's winningest active women's basketball coaches and sits among such coaching greats as Pat Summitt (Tennessee), C. Vivian Stringer (Rutgers), Geno Auriemma (UConn), and Tara VanDerveer (Stanford).

"The big thing for me with this is the fact that I have been fortunate to coach not only some great players, but some great individuals as well," said Roebuck. "I like to look back at all of our players that have been in the system. They are very successful, down to earth and I feel so fortunate to have been able to coach those types of players."

Netting their first 100-point game of the season, the Fighting Sioux moved to 7-11 overall and with a 4-0 record in the Great West, they stand as one of two teams (Chicago State) still undefeated in the conference. The loss was the 11th straight overall for the Huskies and their fourth-consecutive in the league.

"I think we definitely wore them down tonight," said Roebuck. "They were playing with only eight players and we know how that feels."

"We went man-to-man in the second part of the first half and really seemed to wear them down. They played very deliberate tonight. This was not the Houston Baptist team of the past where they would try to go up and down the court and out-run you. This team was very deliberate."

UND finished with five players in double figures, including a team high 24 points from senior forward Mallory Youngblut. The Davenport, Iowa, native finished 8-for-15 from the field, including a career-high tying six three-pointers, for her 12th career 20-point game.

A major spark for the Sioux was the strong performance by senior forward Corey Lof. The Detroit Lakes, N.D., native notched her second career double-double with a career-high 18 points and 10 rebounds (five offensive). She was 8-for-11 from the field, 2-for-3 at the free throw line and added five assists and three steals.

"The player who really stepped up for us this week was definitely Corey Lof," said Roebuck. "I know Mallory is capable of playing well, but Corey played her two best games of the year back-to-back. She had double rebounds in both games and this time it got her a double-double. That's huge for us."

"I knew that I just had to come out and play as hard as I could both on offense and defense," said Lof. "As a team we really pushed the ball on every possession. Coach was very adamant about pushing the ball up the floor and getting it inside. He wanted it every single time. Even in the last minute of the game we were still pushing hard."

Also hitting the double digit mark was sophomore Carly Rothfusz (Eden Prairie, Minn.) and freshman Allyssa Wall (North Sioux City, S.D.) each with 15 points. This was a career-high finish for Rothfusz who went 4-for-7 at three-point range to set new personal marks in both points scored and three-pointers made.

"Carly Rothfusz knocked down some great shots," said Roebuck. "She's been shooting well during practice and she's getting more minutes because of that. She has a great shot. If she has a good summer practicing and spends some time in the weight room, it's going to make a world of difference."

The game marked the seventh straight for Wall in double figures and the 12th of her career. She also added a career-best four assists.

Tonight's game was one of the top performances for the Sioux as they set new season records in several categories: points scored (104), field goals made (37), field goals attempted (65), field goal percentage (.569), three-pointers made (12), assists (29) and steals (19).

UND finished .462 (12-for-26) behind the arc, .857 (18-21) at the free throw line, and converted HBU's 27 turnovers into 43 points.

Jamie Spriggs was 6-for-11 from the field and 2-3 at the free throw line to lead the Huskies with 15 points off of the bench. Destini Texada added another 14 points for HBU.

As a team, the Huskies shot .457 (21-for-46) from the field, .500 (7-for-14) at the free throw line, and were held to .263 (5-for-19) at three-point range.

There wasn't much a big start for either team other than some spectacular three-point shooting from Youngblut, who aced her first three attempts. In the opening three minutes, the game hit three ties and neither team could hit a lead of more than two points. That was until Youngblut hit her first three of the game at 16:54. With a field goal from sophomore Nicole Smart (Ada, Minn.) and her free throw to follow, UND held a slight 11-6 lead over HBU.

The Huskies remained on the heels of the Fighting Sioux through the ensuing six minutes until another three by Youngblut - her fourth of the half - sparked an 11-2 run for UND that would send it to a 35-24 lead with 6:24 on the clock. Inside the run, the Sioux were 4-for-5 from the field, 2-for-2 at three-point range, and 1-for-1 at the free throw line.

With a quick pair of jumpers by freshman Madi Buck (Bismarck, N.D.), a three-pointer each by Youngblut and Rothfusz, and a stellar post move by Lof, North Dakota went into the half leading HBU 47-33.

As they have in games past, the Sioux set the tone to open the second half. Freshman Megan Lauck (Arden Hills, Minn.) hit a jumper and a set of free throws to open the scoring and help the Sioux move into a 60-37, 23-point lead just five minutes in.

The Huskies continued to contest, but at the 11:51 mark, all that changed. Kicked off by a pair of free throws from Rothfusz, UND set out on a four-minute, 16-0 run to take an 80-41 lead and swell the scoring margin to 39 points. Through that run, UND got seven points from Wall, four from Youngblut, three from Lof, and two from Rothfusz.

Through the opening 12:30, the Fighting Sioux out-scored the Huskies 33-8.

The teams traded baskets for a minute, but again sparked by Rothfusz - this time on a three-pointer - the Sioux set out on another run. Through the final 5:47, UND out-scored HBU 22-8. Rothfusz led the way with a trio of three-pointers and a free throw for 10 points and junior Charnise Mothershed (Phoenix, Ariz.) notched five of her final nine points.

"All in all, I think our team really stepped up tonight," said Roebuck. "Corey Lof played great. Mallory played like herself again, hitting big shots. I also thought our bench was very active tonight allowing us the ability to sub five-for-five throughout the second half.

North Dakota will wrap up its seven-game homestand on Monday, Jan. 31 when the Fighting Sioux take on Mayville State, the Alma Mater of UND head coach Gene Roebuck. Gametime is slated for 7 p.m. at the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center in Grand Forks, N.D.

GAME NOTES: Mallory Youngblut is now ranked 21st all-time at UND with 1,133 points. She is also 5th in career three-pointers made (198) and eighth in career three-pointers attempted (509) ... North Dakota leads the all-time series over Houston Baptist with an unblemished 6-0 record since 2009. UND is 4-0 in Grand Forks and 2-0 in Houston ... Since the inaugural season of the Great West Conference (2008-09), UND has gone 15-1 against league foes and 28-36 against non-conference opponents ... The University of North Dakota women's basketball program holds a 776-292 record all-time since the first game was played in 1974. Under head coach Gene Roebuck, UND is 600-128 ... All-time, the Fighting Sioux are 425-83 (.836) when it comes to defending their own court and are 330-39 (.893) under the tutelage of Gene Roebuck ... UND is 90-14 (.861) all-time at the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center, which opened prior to the 2004-05 season.

- Go Sioux -