KANSAS CITY, Mo.–South Dakota sophomore guard Allison Arens scored a career high 30 points as the Coyotes defeated Northern Illinois 97-83 inside the Swinney Recreation Center as a part of the Roo Holiday Classic Monday night.
 
South Dakota (10-2) is now one win away from posting the best nonconference start since the program's move to NCAA Div. I. Northern Illinois (6-4) averaged 93.1 points per game entering tonight's contest, the second-best scoring offense in the nation.
 
Arens becomes the first Coyote to score 30 points in a game since Raeshel Contreras scored 32 against South Dakota State on Jan. 17, 2015. Arens has scored more than 20 points on seven occasions this season. Arens shot 60 percent (12-of-20) from the field tonight, with 14 of her points coming in the second quarter. She also grabbed six off the glass and dished out three assists.

"We gritted and toughed this one out," said USD head coach Dawn Plitzuweit. "Northern Illinois is a team that can flat out score and score in bunches. I thought the tempo of the game favored us in the first half. We limited them to 35 possessions in the first half. That's a normal game for everyone else across the country, but a slow game for them. They picked it up in the second half and started to attack us more after halftime."
 
Five Coyotes reached double figures for the third straight game.
 
Coyote sophomore guard Jaycee Bradley had a hot start, scoring her first six attempts behind the arc to lead the Coyotes with 18 points in the first quarter. She made three triples within a 1:27 span, scoring on three consecutive USD possessions. She made her seventh three ball in the fourth quarter to help the Coyotes pull away once and for all.
 
South Dakota led by as much as 21 points near the end of the first half, but Northern Illinois went on a 15-3 run after the break to bring it within eight. Northern Illinois guard Courtney Woods scored three of her five triples during the run. Woods finished with 19 points.
 
Northern Illinois was led by senior forward Cassidy Glenn's career high 26 points. Glenn shot 52.6 percent (10-of-19) from the field. Husky point guard Ally Lehman, who leads the nation with a pair of triple-doubles this season, tallied 11 points, eight assists and six rebounds. Kelly Smith added 10 points off the bench.
 
Coyote freshman guard Ciara Duffy answered the call in the third quarter, scoring seven of her 13 points to end the Huskies' run. Duffy also had eight boards and five assists in the game.
 
Also reaching double figures for the Coyotes were freshman guard Madison McKeever and senior center Abigail Fogg with 13 and 12 a piece, respectively. McKeever swiped away three steals and handed out three assists as well.
 
The Huskies would again close the Coyote lead down to three points, twice within the fourth quarter. Duffy would score her remaining six points in the final four minutes with Bradley's three, senior forward Bridget Arens hit a contested jumper and McKeever made a pair of free throws as the Coyotes sealed the 14-point victory. 
 
"Bridget Arens played incredibly well for us tonight," said Plitzuweit. "She had a huge take to the baseline that could have been an and-1. Either way, a tough contested shot around the rim. She had some huge rebounds and was really an energy player on the court. She stepped up and answered the bell tonight."
 
South Dakota outrebounded Northern Illinois 38-24 and held the Huskies to nine offensive boards, eight below their season average of 17. The Coyotes were well-rounded off the glass with Duffy and Bridget Arens pulling in eight a piece, with half of Arens' boards coming on the offensive end of the court. Allison Arens and Fogg each grabbed six. The Coyotes outscored the Huskies 20-4 on second chance points.

The Coyotes shot 55.4 percent (36-of-65) from the field and 46.4 percent (13-of-28) from 3-point range.
 
In the program's 46 seasons, the Coyotes have lost just 17 of 261 games when scoring 80 points or more. South Dakota has only lost once when scoring more than 90 points.
 
The Coyotes return to the court at 1 p.m. tomorrow to face Southern Illinois in the Roo Holiday Classic.