KSFY News - Sioux Falls, SD News, Weather, SportsUSF basketball finishes off Minot State Saturday

Women's Recap

After beating Minot State by more than 40 points one day ago, USF struggled to find the bottom of the net Saturday, but their stingy defense which was responsible for 20 Beaver turnovers helped the Cougars come out on top in a 62-58 nail bitter at the Stewart Center in Sioux Falls, S.D. With the victory, USF extends its win streak to six and moves to 21-3 on the year. Minot falls to 10-14.

Similar to last night's game, the opening period was close, however this time it stayed that way throughout the entire first half which featured six ties and seven lead changes.

USF claimed the largest lead of the first half near the 18 minute mark, when Holli Aggen sank a 3-pointer to give the Cougars a 7-2 advantage. Minot fought back, taking the lead on three different occasions and maintained it going into the break, as they handed USF just their fourth halftime deficit this season. USF trailed 28-27.

With 20 minutes in the books, it was clear USF had to do one thing if they wanted to win and that was stop Minot's star forward Carly Boag, who accounted for 12 of the Beaver's 28 points. She also contributed to Minot's 23-19 advantage on the glass, as she tallied eight rebounds before intermission.

The Cougars seemed to find some rhythm in the second half and actually secured a seven point lead with just under nine to play, following a huge 3-pointer from Jamey Hofer, but three consecutive turnovers by USF and more Boag action helped the two teams secure an eighth tie of the game at 48-48.

Minot recaptured control with just over two minutes to play, when Morgan Klose split a pair of free throws to give the Beavers a 55-52 lead, but the Cougars would not back down in front of a home crowd.

Their comeback started with Alyssa Rushton. She scored a near impossible acrobatic runner in the lane to cut it to one and followed her basket with a monster rebound and put back, giving USF a three point cushion with 50 ticks left on the clock.

USF converted four consecutive free throws down the stretch to pull out their fourth win against Minot this season.

The two team's statistics were practically even across the board; however, USF outscored Minot 28-24 in the paint and converted 21 points off of Beaver turnovers, while Minot turned in 18 from the Cougars mistakes.

Carly Boag and Morgan Klose were the only two Beavers in double-figures. Boag, who was a headache all night for USF, recorded an unreal double-double with 22 points and 16 rebounds. Klose added 10 points and three steals for Minot.

USF also had two players finished in double-figures, with one recording a double-double. In her final home game as a Cougar, senior forward Jamey Hofer played a big part in USF's win. She posted 18 of her 22 point in the second half alone, including a momentum changing three late down the stretch. She was perfect at the line (7-7) and pulled down 11 rebounds to record her second double-double this season. Alyssa Rushton was the second Cougar with double-digits. She finished 6-10 from the floor to tally 10 points and five rebounds.

Men's Recap

After a slow start, the University of Sioux Falls outhustled Minot State University, recording nine offensive rebounds which they turned into nine second half points Saturday night to pull off a 71-65 comeback win in their final home game of the season. With the Win, the Cougars record their second perfect home record (11-0) in the last three seasons and move to 16-8 on the year, while Minot falls to 3-21.

The majority of the first half was dominated by the Beavers. After trailing 7-6 near the 17 minute mark, Minot would heat up from deep, knocking down four 3-pointers over the next nine minutes of play, recording a 12-3 run to secure a 13 point first half lead.

USF responded with a 9-0 run to close the half and cut their deficit to just four points at the break.

The matchup of the two big men in the first half alone was worth the price of admission, as both were in double-digits by intermission. Minot's forward Josh Johnson went 3-6 from the field including two 3-pointers to notch 10 points, while senior forward Skyler Bloch got off to a great start with 11 first half points for the Cougars.

One minute into the second half USF reclaimed the lead. The Cougars maintained a one to five point advantage for several minutes, but they looked for a spark to pull away.

USF found that spark in their freshman guard Bretson McNeal. McNeal, who knocked down four big-time threes in yesterday's win, was back at it again. He checked into the game and nailed back-to-back 3-pointers to give the Cougars a 47-40 advantage with 11 minutes to play.

The Cougars would stretch their lead to nine on a David Maxwell 3-pointer near the four minute mark, which seemed to secure a victory, but Minot had other things in mind.

Minot slowly chipped away at their deficit, utilizing efficient time management by drawing fouls and cashing in at the free throw line making for a dramatic finish.

The Beavers traded threes for two free throws to make it a one possession game with 20 seconds to go. On the ensuing possession, Matt Yale drained another clutch 3-pointer to pull within two, but the Cougars demonstrated their ability to make free throw when it counts.

USF converted 12 of 13 free throw attempts in the final two minutes of the game to complete a season sweep of Minot with a 71-65 win at home.

Minot outshot USF, finishing 48% from the floor, while USF connected on 44% of their attempts, but the Cougars won the all-important battle on the glass, where they held a 33-24 advantage.

The Beavers had three players in Thomas Korf, Josh Johnson and Matt Yale score in double-figures. Johnson went 5-12 from the floor and knocked down a game-high four 3-pointers to lead Minot with 19 points from the forward position. Yale also found success from behind the arc, draining two 3-pointers during his 17 point effort. Korf accounted for three additional 3-point field goals for Minot. He added 13 points.

Bloch led the way for the Cougars on senior day. He went 9-17 from the floor and 8-10 at the line to finish with a game-high 26 points and seven rebounds.

A.J. Holland and McNeal provided another solid game from the back court. Holland went 8-10 from the line, most of which came in the final minutes of the game, to record 10 points. He also dished out a game-high six assists. McNeal chipped in 11 for the Cougars in just 15 minutes of play.