Physically, however, was another story.
The Cardinals started out sluggish against the Pipers, sleepwalking to a one-point, 26-25 halftime advantage.
Unfortunately for the Pipers, not only did Erin Petrich's 3-pointer in the waning seconds of the first half pull Hamline to within one, but it also awoke the Cardinals' sleeping giant.
Jamie Rattunde, who scored just six points in the first half, erupted for 14 second-half points — connecting on 6 of 9 field-goal attempts — and finished with her third straight double-double in leading SMU to a 56-46 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference win at the SMU Gym.
Rattunde, who led all scorers with 20 points and added a game-high 13 rebounds, was one of three SMU players to score in double figures. Ashley Luehmann and Angie Arrington were the other two, netting 14 and 11 points, respectively.
"That was a gutsy performance," said SMU coach Dan Messmann. "We did not play well in the first half – I think the trip to Moorhead Monday night (in which SMU returned to Winona in the wee hours of Tuesday morning) took it's toll on us, especially early.
"We played tired (in the first half," Messmann continued. "But we came out a little more focused in the second half — we communicated more on defense and were more technically sound on offense — and just gutted it out."
SMU led by as many as eight in the first half, outscoring Hamline (4-8 MIAC, 6-9 overall) 17-9 through the game's first 11 minutes. Over the final nine minutes, however, Hamline used a 16-9 run to cut the Cardinal lead to one at the intermission.
Rattunde knocked down back-to-back baskets to open the second half, and the Cardinals never looked back, pushing the lead to 10, 46-36 on a Luehmann 3-pointer with 7:18 remaining. SMU scored four of the next six points en route to their biggest lead, 52-38, with just over three minutes left en route to their eighth MIAC win of the season.
"We need that win," said Messmann, whose team moves to 8-4 in the MIAC and 9-6 overall. "We knew coming in that this was going to be a tough game, and I was glad to see us get the job done."