VERMILLION, S.D. - Jeana Hoffman scored 23 points to lead the 16th-ranked South Dakota Women's Basketball Team (18-4, 4-3 NCC) to a 77-59 North Central Conference win over Minnesota State (14-10, 2-7 NCC) on Thursday night before 2,223 at the DakotaDome.

South Dakota won its third straight NCC game to move to 4-3 and third-place in the league. USD is just one game in the loss column out of first place after Augustana defeated North Dakota, 75-67, on Thursday night. USD won its fifth game in the past six outings. With the win, USD swept the season series from MSU after the Coyotes defeated the Mavericks, 66-63, on Jan. 27 in Mankato, Minn.

The Coyotes made 10 three pointers (27 attempts) for the ninth time this season and every time USD has won the game. South Dakota, the NCC's leading free throw shooting team, had an off-night by making just 13-of-22 shots from the foul line. Still, USD hit 27-of-61 field goals for 44.3 percent.

"We played a very solid defensive game tonight," said USD head coach Chad Lavin, who improved to 411-294 in his career and 236-132 at USD. "For us to hold an explosive MSU team to 19 points at halftime and just 59 in the game speaks volume about our play on the defensive end. We also had a solid offensive game and really shot the ball well from three-point range in the opening half," said Lavin.

Hoffman, a junior guard from Mitchell, S.D., recorded her fourth 20-point game of the season, tallying 23 points on 8-of-17 shooting from the field. She hit 5-of-11 from three-point range and was 2-of-2 from the foul line. In addition, she had four steals, three rebounds and an assist. In all, the Coyotes had four double digit scorers. Joining Hoffman in double figures was junior guard Shannon Daly of Groton, S.D., who had 12 points, three assists and three rebounds to go with 3-of-4 shooting from three point range. Sophomore forward Bridget Yoerger of Hinton, Iowa, had 13 points and nine rebounds while sophomore forward Natalie Carda of Beresford, S.D., added 10 points and five rebounds. Yoerger has now reached double figures in scoring a team-high 18 times this season and has 36 in her career. Jenna Hoffman, a junior from Mitchell, S.D., had 10 rebounds, nine points, and six assists.

MSU was led in scoring by Joanna Noreen with 14 points while Alex Andrews had 11 points and seven rebounds. Overall, MSU hit 27-of-63 field goals for 42.9 percent, including 2-of-9 from three-point range. MSU was 3-of-8 from the foul line.

Hoffman led the Coyote to a 40-19 halftime lead by canning four three-point baskets and totaling 16 first half points. MSU outscored USD, 40-37, in the second half.

South Dakota jumped out to a 12-4 lead when Yoerger scored inside at the 16:43 mark of the first half. Consecutive jumpers by Carda built the margin to 19-4 at the 12:19 mark of the half. Then, Jeana Hoffman hit two straight three-point shots as USD built a 25-9 advantage at the 9:58 mark. Later, Ashley Bjorkman (Vermillion, S.D.) knocked down a jumper to give USD a 38-17 lead at the 2:59 mark of the first half. Two foul shots by Daly gave USD a 40-19 lead at the break. Shooting was a big difference in the opening half as the Coyotes hit 15-of-34 shots from the field for 44.1 percent and made 7-of-16 from three-point range. Meanwhile, MSU hit just 8-of-23 field goals for 34.8 percent.

Like the first half, USD jumped out quickly in the second half as Ashley Robinette (South Sioux City, Neb.) hit a three-point field goal (18:40) and Yoerger scored inside for a 46-19 lead at the 18:08 mark. From there, MSU gradually cut into the lead and pulled within 47-31 at the 10:43 mark of the second half when Alex Andrews scored inside. USD answered the charge and built the lead to 22 points (55-33) at the 8:37 mark after Bjorkman hit a jumper. Over the next three minutes, MSU outscored USD, 12-4, to reduce the USD advantage to 59-45 at the 5:21 mark. USD fought off the charge and a jumper by Jenna Hoffman gave USD a 72-54 lead with 2:09 left in the game. From there, the teams traded baskets with Jeana Hoffman's two free throws with 28 seconds left providing USD with a 77-57 lead.

The Coyotes will close out their three-game home stand on Saturday, Feb. 10, when they host St. Cloud State in an NCC contest, starting at 8 p.m. in the DakotaDome.