BROOKINGS, S.D. (KELO.com) — The South Dakota State women’s basketball team defeated Coppin State 94-41 on Thursday night at Frost Arena to advance to 6-3 on the season.
“It was a good win. We played really well,” head coach Aaron Johnston said. “I think the biggest part was that it was just nice to see the ball go through the net at the 3-point line. To see some players really shoot the ball well is important. We’ve been a bit sporadic, I think, from that area.”
A quartet of Jackrabbits reached double figures led by Tori Nelson who turned in a career-best 23 points. Nelson went 9-of-12 from the field, including 4-of-6 from long distance. Sydney Stapleton scored 17 of South Dakota State’s 34 bench points. The sophomore shot 50 percent from beyond the arc, making a career-best five 3-pointers. The junior pair of Myah Selland and Tylee Irwin added 13 and 11 points, respectively.
“Sydney Stapleton is a really good shooter and it’s nice to see her get into a good rhythm. I hope she can build on that,” Johnston said. “Tori is just a really good young player as a freshman and can do a lot of things. Both of them making some perimeter shots, that’s going to loosen a lot of other things up for them.”
The Jacks outrebounded the Eagels, 54-28, as Kallie Theisen pulled down a team-best 12 boards. State grabbed 24 offensive rebounds to convert on 23 second-chance points.
State took an early lead with a free throw as Coppin State was assessed a technical foul prior to the opening tip. The Jackrabbits took a quick 11-2 lead, but a Coppin State layup made it 11-4 at the 5:24 mark. The Eagles were scoreless for the remainder of the quarter as the Jacks went on a 17-0 run, highlighted by three consecutive 3-pointers from Stapleton.
Rylie Cascio Jensen hit a 3-pointer to open the second quarter, followed by a pair of free throws from Paiton Burckhard to extent the Jacks’ run to 22 points. SDSU carried its momentum as it led 57-15 at the half.
A Nelson 3-pointer gave the Jackrabbits their largest lead of 59 points, en route to outscoring the Eagles 26-12 in the third quarter. Coppin State opened the final frame with its largest run of seven points. The teams traded punches the rest of the way, but SDSU’s advantage held up as the Jackrabbits claimed the 94-41 victory over Coppin State.
Game Notes
This was the first-ever meeting between Coppin State and South Dakota State.The last time South Dakota State defeated an opponent by a 53-point margin was Jan. 23 against North Dakota State (86-33).The Jacks made 12 3-pointers in the contest, shooting 38.7 percent from long distance.Tori Nelson, Sydney Stapleton and Kallie Theisen hit new career marks in the win.
Up Next
South Dakota State will travel to take on No. 3/3 Oregon on Sunday. Tipoff is set for 2 p.m. CT/noon PT.
