Green Bay, Wis. -- Junior forward Amber Hegge scored 16 points, but the South Dakota women's basketball team lost to No. 21-ranked Wisconsin-Green Bay, 70-53 in nonconference action Tuesday night in Green Bay, Wis. The loss dropped the Coyotes to 8-7 on the year, while Green Bay improved to 11-1.

Hegge (Crofton, Neb.) hit 5-of-8 field goal attempts and added seven rebounds and four assists, both team highs. Junior center Jodie Boss (Columbus, Neb.) tied the single-game record for blocks in a game with seven in addition to scoring 12 points and adding five rebounds. Sophomore guard Tempestt Wilson (Elk River, Minn.) and freshman forward Stacia Robertson (Grand Island, Neb.) each chipped in with seven points. Green Bay, which entered the week ranked No. 23 but climbed to No. 21 in the latest ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll, was led by Lydia Bauer with 15 points.

Green Bay took a 5-0 lead, but the Coyotes came back by scoring seven of the game's next nine points to tie the game at 7-7 with 16:54 left in the first half. Hegge drained a three, while Robertson and Wilson added baskets.

The Phoenix came back with a crucial 22-6 spurt to take a 29-13 lead with 8:09 left in the opening half.

The Coyotes struggled with turnovers and cold shooting against the Green Bay defense in the first half. South Dakota hit just 6-of-18 field goals (33.3 percent) and committed 15 turnovers. Wilson led South Dakota with seven first-half points while Roche had five. Boss had five blocks in the opening half alone.

After Green Bay pushed the lead to 21 early in the second half, the Coyotes closed within 40-24 after a three-point play by Robertson with 17:24 left. The Phoenix answered with a 15-2 run, however, to push the lead to 55-26.

The Coyotes closed within 59-38 after a Hegge converted a layup, and kept chipping away from there. They were as close as 61-47 with 2:33 left after Robertson sank a pair of foul shots but got no closer.

South Dakota finished with 30 turnovers, which the Phoenix converted into 32 points. South Dakota shot 44.4 percent in the second half and finished the game at 14-of-36 (38.9 percent).

The Coyotes shot well from the foul line, hitting 21-of-25 attempts (84 percent). Boss led the way by going 6-of-6.

Sophomore Alexis Yackley (Onida, S.D.) added three assists, while junior guard Annie Roche (Vermillion, S.D.) had two steals to go with five points.

South Dakota is off until Jan. 6 when it plays at Cornell. Game time is 6 p.m. Central in Ithaca, N.Y.

Notes: It was the first ranked opponent the Coyotes have faced this season, and the third that qualified for the NCAA tournament in 2009-10...Boss set the single-game blocked shots record against Milwaukee on Nov. 21 and later tied it against Wichita State on Dec. 5 before tying it again on Tuesday...Hegge has scored in double figures in nine of the 11 games she has played in this season.