SIOUX FALLS, S.D.—The University of South Dakota women's basketball team outscored Omaha 31-9 in the first quarter on Saturday afternoon.
 
Tough to keep the momentum after that kind of opening effort, right? And then the Coyotes outscored the Mavericks 33-9 in the second quarter.
 
With the winning and losing part of the equation an issue settled in the first 10 minutes of this No. 1 vs. No. 8 quarterfinal matchup at the PREMIER Center, the Coyotes' assignment then moved to doing the best they could to deliver efficiency.
 
During a season filled with history, the No. 17/12 Coyotes have occasionally had to deal with the conventional time-to-get-tough challenges that every basketball team runs into over the course of a season. More often, however, USD has defined its season by how it handles prosperity.
 
And how do you properly handle prosperity? By following a 31-9 first quarter with a 33-9 second quarter.
 
One half of basketball is a small sample size, but the effort was symbolic of the entire season. The Coyotes did not do much looking back while plowing through a 16-0 Summit League season. It follows that they're not going to do much of it now, either.
 
"We're definitely a team that likes to set goals for ourselves," said Monica Arens, who scored 16 points while going 5-for-5 from the field. "We don't like putting a ceiling on what our goals are. So I think it's about playing hard and finishing every play."
 
The only ceiling for the Coyotes was playing time. No starter played more than 22 minutes in the Coyotes' 99-40 win over Omaha, something that may help them on Monday.
 
It was apparent early on Saturday that an upset was off the table for the Mavericks. Soon after, the idea that the Coyotes might deliver a lackluster win was also gone.
 
"Our focus coming into this game was at another level," Arens said. "Every player on the team has been here a number of times. We have some unfinished business in this building. Our level of focus and our determination on performing well here is at another level as well."
 
When it became clear that playing a good, clean and injury-free game was the target – in this case at the expense of an outmanned Omaha squad – it was obvious the Coyotes were both physically and emotional prepared. Taking a 35-point lead over the first 14 minutes has a way of sending that message.
 
"Our young ladies were excited for a chance to play again," USD coach Dawn Plitzuweit said. "We came out of the gates and were very, very solid on both ends of the court. We were good defensively – Omaha made some tough shots early in the game. Offensively we were moving the ball, sharing the ball. I thought our competitive level was very, very high."
 
The Coyotes' perfect regular season was just the third time a program has gone undefeated over the conference regular-season schedule. It is the second time in three seasons USD has pulled it off.
 
The term "comfort level" in this case has nothing to do with being self-satisfied. It has everything to do with maintaining a level of excellence without being overwhelmed by it.
 
"This group is locked in, not just to the mantra that it's one-game-at-a-time, but to winning possessions," Plitzuweit said. "And then locking-in to winning the next possession. I think that is pretty unique and special about this group."
 
The Coyotes' average victory margin during the Summit League season was a preposterous 32 points. It means the 59 USD won by against Omaha was not quite the aberration it might be during a normal season.
 
But 2019-20 for the Coyotes hasn't not been normal. For all the right reasons, it's not even close to normal.