VERMILLION, S.D.—A 24-point second-half lead and a game-high 28 points from junior guard
Matt Mooney was more than enough for South Dakota to get past Omaha, 79-64, on Senior Day Saturday at the Sanford Coyote Sports Center.
The win moves the Coyotes to 24-6 overall, most wins at the Division I level, and 11-2 in Summit League play with one to go. South Dakota finishes 13-1 at home for the second straight year at its new facility. It formally sets up a Summit League showdown in Brookings Thursday with the winner claiming a conference championship and the No. 1 seed at the upcoming Summit League Tournament.
South Dakota led 39-24 at the half and scored the first seven points of the second half to cap a 15-0 run that put the Coyotes in control. The Mavericks were 0-for-11 during that stretch which spanned more than six minutes.
"I thought the last seven minutes of the first half and first 5-6 minutes of the second half were certainly pivotal moments of the game," said USD head coach
Craig Smith. "We stopped them 9 out of 12 possessions going into the half, and we scored on 8 out of 9 going into the half, and obviously the pendulum really swung.
"We had a great crowd, and it was a good way to finish the year at home. We control our destiny and winning this game puts us in a position where we can do what we want to do."
Mooney scored 16 of his 28 after the break and finished 11 of 20 from the field. It was his 10
th 20-point performance this season and was three points shy of his career high. In addition to Mooney, USD got 15 points and eight rebounds from
Trey Burch-Manning. Senior
Nick Fuller, in 23 minutes off the bench, had 11 points and a career-high 10 boards for his first collegiate double-double.
Tyler Hagedorn had eight points and eight rebounds.
Omaha (9-19, 4-8 Summit) had four starters in double figures, but surprisingly Zach Jackson was the one who wasn't, ending his streak of 21 consecutive games of at least 10 points. The fourth-leading scorer in the Summit at 18 per game was held to a single 3-pointer on seven shots from the field. He had 26 points in the earlier meeting against the Coyotes in Omaha.
Matt Pile, who returned to Omaha's lineup recently following a long injury, scored 16 points and had seven rebounds to lead the Mavericks in both categories. He hit extended 3's on back-to-back possessions with seven minutes left that helped Omaha climb within 11 points at 67-56 with 5:18 remaining. Fuller made two free throws for the Coyotes and Mooney scored in the paint to push the lead back to 15.
Notes:
-South Dakota outrebounded Omaha 44-34 and outscored the Mavericks from the free-throw line 23-9.
-The Coyotes scored 44 points in the paint and shot 29 free throws compared to 13 for Omaha.
-USD shot 58 percent (25 of 43) from inside the arc to offset a 2-for-14 performance from beyond it.
-Omaha was held to its lowest shooting percentage of the Summit season at 35 percent (24 of 68).
-Omaha is 8-2 at home, but 1-14 in road games this season.
