FORT WAYNE, Ind. —Big runs to begin the third and fourth quarters and a defense that produced 25 turnovers were the keys to a 62-41 South Dakota victory against Purdue Fort Wayne Wednesday inside Gates Sports Center. South Dakota guard Ciara Duffy led all players with 19 points. She also had six rebounds, five assists and four steals. Purdue Fort Wayne freshman Riley Ott with 11 points was the only other player to score in double figures. It was the 14th consecutive win for the Coyotes (13-2, 2-0 Summit) over the Mastodons (4-10, 0-1) dating back to 2014. It is also the second straight road win for South Dakota to start Summit League play. The Coyotes, No. 22 in this week’s national rankings, will play five of their next six at home starting with Denver Sunday at 1 p.m.
-0-
FORT WAYNE, Ind. —South Dakota took a 12-point lead into halftime only to see Purdue Fort Wayne storm back to earn a 70-59 win in the Mastodons’ Summit League opener Wednesday inside the Gates Sports Center. PFW (8-8, 1-0 Summit), led by Brian Patrick and Jarred Godfrey, hit eight 3-pointers and shot 55 percent in the second half to erase a 35-23 deficit at the intermission. Godrey had 22 points on 8-of-10 shooting including three triples. Patrick finished with five 3-pointers and scored 15 of his 21 points in the second half. South Dakota (9-7, 0-2) got six three-pointers and 22 points from Tyler Hagedorn, but dropped its fourth straight. Hagedorn also pulled down a team-high nine rebounds. South Dakota will play five of its next six at home starting with Denver Sunday