KSFY News - Sioux Falls, SD News, Weather, SportsUSD settles score, tops SDSU 72-68 in rematch

Senior Louie Krogman had 22 points and senior Charlie Westbrook added 18 to lead the South Dakota men's basketball team to a huge 72-68 win over in-state rival South Dakota State in Summit League action Thursday night at the DakotaDome in Vermillion, S.D. The Coyotes, who won their second straight, improved to 9-14 overall and 4-10 in the Summit League, while SDSU fell to 19-7 overall and 11-3 in the Summit League.

Krogman (White River, S.D.) finished 5-of-13 from three-point range in the game, and also added a game-high eight assists. Westbrook (Milwaukee, Wis.) finished 8-of-14 from the field and also added four assists and two blocks. Sophomore Steve Tecker (Brule, Wis.) gave the Coyotes excellent minutes off the bench with 11 points, six assists and four rebounds.  Sophomore Trevor Gruis (Ellsworth, Minn.) added seven points and a game-high 11 rebounds, while junior Allen Saint-Gelais (Guadeloupe, France) added eight points and five rebounds.

"We came in focused on what we needed to do," South Dakota head coach Dave Boots said. "I'm really proud of our guys. We played well. We were good defensively and we rebounded the ball very well tonight."

The Coyotes shot 55.8 percent (29-of-52) from the field, including 35 percent (7-of-20) from three-point range. SDSU shot 35.8 percent (24-of-67) for the night, including 31.3 percent (10-of-32).

The Jacks were led by a game-high 27 points from Nate Wolters.  He was 10 of 27 from the field and 3 of 9 from beyond the arc.  Chad White added 17 points off the bench for the Jackrabbits in the losing effort.

The game featured a wild finish as the two schools added another chapter to their long-standing rivalry. The Coyotes led by as many as 21 in the game before SDSU cut the gap in the second half.  Several key plays down the stretch – particularly on the defensive end – helped South Dakota preserve the win.

SDSU cut the lead to 68-65 after Wolters drained a three-pointer with 1:51 left. The Coyotes came up with the crucial basket, however, senior Ricardo Andreotti (Sao Paulo, Brazil) slammed home a thunderous dunk to the delight of the boisterous DakotaDome crowd to push the South Dakota lead to 70-65 with 30 seconds left.

The Jackrabbits cut the lead to 70-68 on another three, but would get no closer. Tecker hit 1-of-2 free throws to extend the Coyote lead to 71-68; and Gruis hit 1-of-2 free throws with five seconds left to push the lead to 72-68. South Dakota's defense delivered big in the final minute, forcing two key stops in the final seconds to keep SDSU from cutting into the lead.

"We just hung in there," Boots said. "I can't say enough about our guys tonight." 

Just as the Jackrabbits began the game in Brookings with a torrid start, the Coyotes responded in kind, building an 11-4 lead after a three-pointer by Krogman. SDSU cut the lead to 11-6 with 13:22 left, but the Coyotes responded with an 12-0 run over the next three minutes to push the lead to 23-6. Krogman sparked the run with six points, while Tecker, Gruis and Westbrook each added baskets.

After an SDSU basket Westbrook and Krogman hit back-to-back threes to push the lead to 29-8 with 8:01 left in the first half.

Moments later, Krogman drained another three – his fourth of the half – to give South Dakota its biggest lead, 34-13 with 5:42 left in the half. SDSU closed the half on an 11-0 run to cut the Coyote lead to 34-24 at the break.

South Dakota shot 14-of-30 (46.7 percent) in the first half, including 5-of-15 (33.3 percent) from three-point range, while holding the Jackrabbits to 30 percent shooting (9-of-30), including 0-of-8 from three-point range. Krogman had a huge first half with 15 points, three assists and two steals, while Westbrook added seven.

The Coyotes scored the first five points of the second half – on a layup by Westbrook and a three-pointer by Krogman – to extend their lead to 39-24 with 18:11 left. The lead grew to 48-32 when Westbrook drained a jumper in the paint.

South Dakota maintained its double-digit lead for much of the half before SDSU made its run. However, the dunk by Andreotti and the key defensive stops allowed the Coyotes to finish off the key four-point win.  Andreotti finished with six points and nine rebounds for the Coyotes.

The Coyotes now have won three of the past four meetings in the series with the Jacks and three-straight in Vermillion.  South Dakota returns to action Saturday at home against North Dakota State. Game time is 7:35 p.m. at the DakotaDome in Vermillion, S.D.