EDINBURG, Texas -- Junior Abby Kinder had season highs of 19 points and seven assists, but it wasn't enough as The University of South Dakota women's basketball team fell to Texas-Pan American, 60-57, in Great West Conference action Saturday in Edinburg, Texas.

Kinder (Granger, Ind.) also added six rebounds, sharing the team lead with teammate Amber Hegge (So., Crofton, Neb.). Hegge had 13 points for USD (8-10, 2-3 Great West), while Kara Iverson (Sr., Yankton, S.D.) had 11 points.

UTPA (7-13, 3-1 GWC) had four players in double figures, led by Aleeya Grigsby's 16 points and 10 rebounds.

The Coyotes held a 37-29 halftime lead after an impressive first half which saw them lead by as many as 14 points. Kinder had 16 points in the first half alone to spark USD.

However, cold shooting and turnovers hampered USD in the second half as the Broncs chipped away at the lead. USD shot just 25.9 percent (7-of-27) in the second half while committing 10 turnovers.

UTPA cut the gap to 47-44 with 12:19 left after a basket by Aleeya Grigsby, and from there, the biggest lead for either team was five points.

USD held a 53-48 lead with 6:36 left after a basket by Jasmine Mosley (Sr., Bellevue, Neb.). However, the Coyotes would not hit another field goal until Iverson sank a three-pointer with two seconds left.

That cold spell allowed UTPA to go on a 10-1 run over the next six minutes and build a 58-54 lead with 30 seconds left.

Iverson banked in a three-pointer with two seconds left to cut the UTPA lead to 60-59. USD fouled immediately with 1.6 seconds left, and Marah Guzman, who was 10-for-10 from the foul line, hit two free throws to push it to 60-57.

USD had one last chance to tie as Hegge had a shot that was blocked. No foul was called on the play, leaving USD three points short.

UTPA hit 22-of-34 free-throw attempts, compared to 2-of-5 for USD. The Coyotes shot 37.7 percent from the field, compared to 43.2 percent for UTPA.

Annie Roche (So., Vermillion, S.D.) added six points for USD, while Jackie Hiebert (So., Maple Grove, Minn.) chipped in with four points off the bench, all coming in the first half. Iverson finished with two blocks, while Mosley added three assists.

USD led 12-8 four minutes into the game, starting out 5-of-6 (83.3 percent) from the field. Kinder hit two 3-pointers, while Hegge had four points. Kinder opened the game 3-of-3 from three-point range and 4-of-4 overall from the field in accounting for 11 of USD's first 19 points.

USD continued to build its lead, as Roche drained a three-pointer and Hegge hit a basket to push the lead to 28-14 with nine minutes left in the first half.

The Broncs cut the gap to 28-20, but the Coyotes extended the lead back to 11 at 37-26 after Sam Mehr (Fr., Apple Valley, Minn.) scored with 1:54 in the opening half.

The Coyotes controlled play for much of the first half and as a result, took a 37-29 lead into halftime. Kinder had a huge first half for USD with 16 points on 6-of-8 shooting. She also added five assists and three rebounds, both team highs. USD, despite its shooting woes, did maintain an advantage for much of the second half before UTPA took the lead for good at 54-53 with 2:10 left.

USD caps off a five-game road trip on Saturday, Feb. 6 at Seattle. Game time is 4 p.m. Central time in Seattle, Wash. USD beat Seattle, 67-53 on Jan. 10 in Vermillion, S.D.