Coyotes Host Purdue Fort Wayne Thursday

MBB vs. PFW

VERMILLION, S.D. -- The South Dakota men will host Purdue Fort Wayne on Thursday at 7 p.m. inside the Sanford Coyote Sports Center.

The Game
USD and PFW have met home and away each year for the last nine years as Summit League foes, but the Mastodons announced this past summer it will switch to the Horizon League starting next season. Barring a matchup in March in Sioux Falls this could be the last time the two teams play each other as conference foes.

Buy One Get One Tickets
If you bring your ticket stub from the South Dakota State game, you will be eligible for a buy one get one free ticket special for Thursday's game.

The Mastodons (9-11, 2-3 SL)
PFW defeated South Dakota to open up conference play before falling to North Dakota State four days later. The Mastodons are entering with a two-game losing streak after falling to SDSU and Oral Roberts at home.

Sophomore Jarred Godfrey has picked up the scoring weight with 16.1 points per game this season while Brian Patrick chips in with 13.5 per game.

As a team, the Mastodons average 70.2 points per game while giving up 70.3 points per game. PFW shoots 43 percent from the field and 32 percent from deep.

During the two-game losing streak, the Mastodons have been outscored by an average of 16.5 points. PFW has been held to 37 percent shooting from the field while allowing its opponent to shoot 56.4 percent. Purdue Fort Wayne has been shooting even worse from deep as they have only been shooting 25 percent while its opponents have shot 45 percent the last two games.

The road hasn't been kind to the Mastodons as well as they are getting outscored by an average of 10.9 points in only two victories out of 10 road games. On the road, the Mastodons have been getting out to slow starts only averaging 30.2 points in the first half while their opponents average 38.6 points in the first half.

The Coyotes (12-8, 3-3 SL)
South Dakota took down its in-state rival South Dakota State 99-84 on Sunday to claim one point in the South Dakota Showdown Series presented by South Dakota Corn. With the women's win over SDSU as well, the Yotes lead 5.5 points to 1.5 points on the season. USD snapped a four-game skid against its in-state rivals and a five-game win streak for the Jackrabbits.

In the game, senior Tyler Hagedorn notched his 1,000th career point early in the game after a pair of triples. Hagedorn is now the third Coyote to reach the milestone this season after seniors Triston Simpson and Tyler Peterson hit the mark in a game against Omaha earlier this month.

Hagedorn is the team's leading scorer with 18.7 points per contest which ranks first in the Summit. Stanley Umude averages 17.1 points which rank fifth in the Summit as well. Cody Kelley (10.9), Triston Simpson (10.7) and Tyler Peterson (11.0) round out the starting five that all average in double figures for the Coyotes.

As a team, USD averages 77.2 points per game while shooting 48.5 percent from the field and 41.3 percent from deep.

The Series
PFW has an 11-9 series lead over the Yotes in the nine years. In Vermillion, the Coyotes hold a 5-3 record against PFW. The Mastodons have won the past three matchups, however, the Yotes won five-straight before the last three losses to the Mastodons.

One Last Thing
The men's team ranks third in the nation in 3-point percentage at 41 percent while the women also rank second in the nation for 3-point percentage at 41 percent as well. There is only three other Division I teams that have both their men's and women's teams in the top-25 in the same category in Oregon, St. Mary's and Gonzaga.

Print Friendly Version