When it comes to postseason basketball, it takes players with experience and all-out determination.

Jordan Spencer, Ashton Yossi and Millie Niggeling provided that experience for Wayne State College Saturday night in the quarterfinals of the NSIC Conference Tournament.

The three-headed monster led the Wildcats with 47 points on the way to a 76-63 win over St. Cloud State in the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, S.D.

“What those three seniors have meant to me personally is hard to describe,” Coach Chris Kielsmeier said. “Certainly what they have done in between the lines and winning games are just undeniable what they’ve done. They mean so much to me and our program; it was a very special night for them.

“You want them to experience as many of these moments as possible moving forward because they deserve it. The entire program deserves it.”

It was a big chance for other players with little postseason experience to not only gain experience, but contribute to a victory.

“We talked about it at halftime, ‘stop fighting the game, just relax,’ and we got in a rhythm offensively in the second half and it was one of the few stretches where we didn’t fight the game,” Kielsmeier said.

Wayne State took the lead for good at the 15:26 mark of the first half, and proceeded to go on a 9-0 run to make the score 16-7.

Wayne State led by as much as 11 in the first half, but St. Cloud State cut the lead before halftime to make the score 38-32.

“The officiating called the game tight early on so it was hard for both teams to get into a rhythm, but they battled and found a way to get through it,” Kielsmeier said. “We had some bench players come out and play outstanding.”

After only playing six minutes in the first half, Spencer made her presence felt in the second half. She scored 18 points and pulled down seven rebounds in the second frame to give the Wildcats the leadership needed to pull out the quarterfinal win.

Wayne State came out firing in the second half, going on a 13-4 out of the break to take a 51-36 advantage.

“We got some shots in transition and some open threes that we hit,” Kielsmeier said.

Wayne State held a 16-point lead with 8:49 to go, only to watch it evaporate to six with just over four minutes left.

“We just made some defensive mistakes down the stretch where they got back in it, and usually we are a lot sharper than that defensively,” Kielsmeier said.

Unlike in last season’s quarterfinal matchup with Sioux Falls, Wayne State answered the bell and rebuilt a lead, hanging on for the 76-63 win.

Wayne State showed composure down the stretch, especially from the free throw line, making 27-34 shots.

Sadie Murren showed certain calmness from the line, going 9-10, while Spencer and Schulte made five apiece from the charity stripe.

“We made a lot of big plays down the stretch, we made the free throws,” Kielsmeier said. “Our players know how to close the game out and that showed tonight.”

Wayne State shot 41 percent from the field and a measly 19 percent from beyond the arc.

The Wildcats advance to the semifinals of the NSIC Conference Tournament to take on MSU Moorhead Monday afternoon at 5:30 p.m.

On the left side of the bracket, Northern State defeated Augustana 76-64 and Minnesota State-Mankato defeated Minnesota Crookston 70-60. They will meet up in the semifinals Monday at noon.

“The coaching staff will have a late night tonight, it’s some of the most fun times of the year,” Kielsmeier said. “From a coaching staff standpoint, you want to work all night because you are still playing. But the most important thing is to keep the players relaxed and in a comfort zone.”

Kielsmeier also showed gratitude to the large fan section that showed up in Sioux Falls to cheer on the Wildcats to a victory.

“Our fan base was so loud and passionate and it was great to see that many people there,” he said. “I’m so appreciative of our cheerleaders that came and just what a great night for Wayne State College.”