South Dakota limited Denver to five field goals in the second half and got 13 points each from Tia Hemiller and Lisa Loeffler in an 82-56 win inside the DakotaDome on Wednesday night.

 

It was the first meeting between the two teams since last year’s Summit League Tournament Championship game in Sioux Falls. The Coyotes won that game 82-71 and advanced to the NCAA Tournament.

 

This game was defined by a 24-6 run by South Dakota out of halftime. The Coyotes (16-5, 6-2 Summit) scored the final nine points of the first half to take a 42-37 advantage into the break, and didn’t stop the run there.

 

Hemiller and Nicole Seekamp scored six points for the Coyotes during the first 10 minutes of the second half. Raeshel Contreras opened the frame with a 3-pointer and added a layup near the 14-minute mark that gave USD a 58-43 advantage. Contreras finished with 12 points, three assists and five steals, while Seekamp finished with 10 points.

 

Denver (7-15, 4-4) shot 53 percent in the first half (14 of 26), but missed 12 of its first 15 shots of the second half and made 5 of 27 attempts (18 percent) during the stanza. The Pioneers also committed eight turnovers in the half and 19 for the game. When the run was complete, South Dakota led 66-43 with 10 minutes to go.

 

Paige Bradley’s 14 points led four Denver players who scored in double figures. Alecia Espinoza had 12 points and Jordan Johnston and Jacqlyn Poss added 10 points each. The rest of the team combined for 10 points on 2 of 16 shooting. As a team, the Pioneers had more fouls (22) than field goals (19).

 

The Coyotes improved to 9-0 at home this season and they increased their lead atop the Summit League standing to a full game ahead of North Dakota State. Denver fell to seventh place, but stands two games behind first-place South Dakota.

 

The Coyotes will host Oral Roberts as part of a men’s-women’s doubleheader on Saturday. The women will tipoff at 2 p.m. with the men’s tip scheduled at 4:30 p.m.