VERMILLION, S.D. – Nicole Seekamp tallied 16 points and dished out six assists as the South Dakota women's basketball team collected its fifth straight win with a 81-62 victory over Valparaiso on Tuesday night in the DakotaDome. USD is now 4-0 at home this season.
Seekamp shot 4-for-9 from the field and was 8-for-8 from the free-throw line. For the second straight outing, all Coyotes (7-2) who played scored, and for the third-straight game, the Coyotes never trailed their opponent.
Two Coyotes nearly recorded double-doubles as Lisa Loeffler finished with 11 points and nine rebounds and Margaret McCloud added nine points and 12 rebounds. Jaylah Jackson added a career-high 10 points, upping her previous high of nine that she scored at Valparaiso (3-6) on Dec. 31 last season.
South Dakota outrebounded the Crusaders 55-33, had 17 assists on 29 baskets and went 19-for-20 at the free-throw line. The Coyotes also outscored Valpo 34-22 in the paint and 15-8 on second chance points.
Dani Franklin led Valpo with 18 points and six rebounds while Lexi Miller added 10 points.
The Coyotes made their first four shots to jump out to an 8-0 lead in the game's opening 88 seconds, and would stretch that lead to as many as 20 during the half (35-15). Seekamp tallied 10 first half points, Raeshel Contreras chipped in seven points and McCloud grabbed six first half rebounds. USD outrebounded the Crusaders 29-16 and outscored them 18-6 in the paint.
Franklin tallied 11 points to lead Valpo in the first half. The Coyotes held the Crusaders to just nine first half baskets (9-of-33 shooting) and led 42-24 at halftime.
McCloud and Loeffler both had seven points in the second half. The Coyotes finished the half with nine assists on 12 baskets and shot 13-of-14 from the charity stripe. USD outscored the Crusaders 17-12 in bench points and led by as many as 25 (53-28) in the half.
Miller had 10 points for Valpo in the second half. The Crusaders had more field goals than USD (13-12), but were outscored 39-38 in the frame.
The Coyotes are off until they host the University of Saint Mary (Kan.) on Dec. 18. That game will start at 5 p.m. and will be part of a USD doubleheader.
