KSFY News - Sioux Falls, SD News, Weather, SportsUSF hoops split with Dakota State

Women's Recap

The University of Sioux Falls saw four players score in double-digits and ten mark the scoring column Saturday evening, when the Cougars coasted to a 77-37 win over Dakota State University, their second blowout victory over the Trojans in 18 days. With the win, the Cougars improve to 16-3 on the year, while DSU falls to 6-18.

The Cougars lead 12-5 with just under 12:00 to play, but that's when they turned on the heat. Behind by Vanessa Johnson and Alyssa Rushton, USF turned in a 16-0 run, holding the Trojans scoreless for nearly seven minutes.  

Rushton posted a season-high 10 points in the first half, while Johnson tallied nine in the first 20 minutes of play.

USF held DSU to just four first half field goals to claim a dominating 35-12 lead at the break.

The Trojans doubled their point total in the second half, where they were outscored 42-25.

Similar to the first half, USF controlled the arc, as six different players combined to knock down eight second half 3-pointers, while limiting DSU to just two. The Cougars finished the game with a season high 15 trey balls in comparison to three by the home team.

Freshman guard Jaicee Ulmer was the story of the second half. She connected on four of her five attempts from the field and the free throw line, to score a game-high 13 second half points. Ulmer also dished out three assists in the period.

Ulmer was not the only Cougar off the bench to get involved. USF received nearly half of their scoring outside of the starting lineup, as their bench outscored DSU's 38-5.

The Cougars also outhustled the Trojans, gaining 19 points on second chance opportunities and 20 points off 17 DSU turnovers.

DSU did not have a single player break double figures today. Julie Munson led the Trojans with nine points and Kylie Westover, the team's leading scorer, closely followed with eight points.

Following her second half explosion, Ulmer finished as the game's top scorer with 17 points. She shot 86% (6-7) from the field and 80% (4-5) at the line, while leading the team with four assists, one block and three steals. 

USF's leading scorer Vanessa Johnson surpassed her season average with 15 points, all of which came from beyond the arc where she was 5-8 on the game. Bailey Bouman recorded her second game in double-digits this season, as she posted 11 points on 3-5 shooting from deep and 4-6 from the field.

Men's Recap

Despite a third consecutive 20 point performance by senior forward Skyler Bloch, the University of Sioux Falls could not overcome a four point halftime deficit, which Dakota State University turned into a big 66-56 win Saturday night in Madison, S.D. The loss snapped USF's nine game win streak and puts them at 12-8 on the year, while DSU moves to 15-9.

Saturday had the making of a trap game from the beginning. The Trojans entered the contest on a four game win streak, with all four wins coming at home and a nasty taste in their mouth from their last meeting with the Cougars just 18 days ago, when USF hammered DSU for an 83-57 win at home.

It was a different story today. USF trailed 14-11 following two free throws from James Rader with 9:24 to play in the first half. However, that is when DSU would go on a 7-0 run and stretch their lead to 10 points with just under seven minutes to play.

USF head coach, Chris Johnson wisely took a timeout and made the appropriate substitutions. His team responded and the Cougars recorded a 9-2 run of their own, cutting their deficit back to three with two minutes to play.

With 20 minutes in the books, USF found themselves trailing 28-24. Today marks just the second halftime deficit the Cougars have faced in their last 13 contests.

A big part of that was poor shooting. USF shot 26% (7-27) from the floor and 12.5% (1-8) behind the arc, while DSU connected at a 55% (11-20) rate from the field, and 43% (3-7) from deep in the first half. The only decent shooting by the Cougars came at the free throw line, where they were 9-10 before the break.

The Cougars quickly cut DSU's lead to one in the opening minutes of the second half and the game would stay that close throughout majority of the remaining minutes. The Trojans maintained a one to four point buffer through the first 13 minutes of the second half.

David Maxwell found Keith Cutler for a huge three to make it 47-45, DSU, with just under five minutes to play, but that is as close as USF would come to the Trojans as they made free throws late to pick up their fifth consecutive win.

The story of the night was dismal shooting by USF. The Trojans outshot the Cougars, 44%-30%, their second worst shooting performance this season.

It was all Adam Spencer for the Trojans. He finished 7-12 from the field and 4-6 from deep to total 24 points and seven rebounds. Donald Stewart was DSU's second player in double figures. He went 7-9 at the charity stripe and 4-7 from the floor to tally 15 points.