Video Highlights: Santa Clara @ South Dakota
VERMILLION, SD – Santa Clara trailed by just four with 3:41 left but South Dakota closed the game on a 15-2 run to beat the Broncos Tuesday night at the DakotaDome, 70-53.
South Dakota (4-3) turned the ball over just five times and the Coyotes received a game-high 20 points from Amber Hegge, who had missed the last four games with an arm injury. Annie Roche added 18 points for USD, scoring 16 in the first half.
Lena Gipson – who led the Broncos with 15 points and 11 rebounds – dropped in a free throw and scored in the paint to make it 55-51 with four minutes to play.
Ashley Armstrong had 11 rebounds, which matched a career-high, while Meagan Fulps scored 13 points for the second straight game for Santa Clara (0-5).
One of Armstrong's two first-half 3s gave Santa Clara a 26-25 lead with 2:57 remaining before halftime. Armstrong finished with nine points.
Roche was terrific for USD in the first half, answering with consecutive baskets on the other end to fuel a 7-0 run and allow the Coyotes to lead at halftime 33-26.
Hegge went 5 of 9 from the field in the second half to help South Dakota build an 11-point lead with 9:30 to play, until a driving basket by Alyssa Shoji and a triple by Ricki Radanovich cut the lead back to six, 53-47.
The Broncos, who entered the game shooting .354 percent from the floor, went 17 for 51 (.333 percent) Tuesday night. Shoji went 0 of 10 from three-point range and as a team SCU was just 6 of 19 from beyond the arc.
Santa Clara will try and pick up its first win of the season Thursday night at Wichita State (3-2). Tip off is set for 7 p.m. CT (5 p.m. PT).