OMAHA, Neb. — South Dakota basketball picked up a gritty road win over Omaha Wednesday night 68-64 at Baxter Arena. Jordan Crawford had a career night with 27 points on 10-of-16 shooting with five 3-pointers and five rebounds. 
 
Uzziah Buntyn added 17 points, going 9-for-11 from the free throw line, while Cameron Fens tallied 16 points, six rebounds and three assists. Silas Bennion made his first start as a Coyote tonight and led the team with four assists.
 
There was a lid on the basket to start the game, as the Coyotes first bucket came at the 13-minute mark of the first half. South Dakota, however, held the Mavericks to just six points during that time. Cameron Fens broke the seal with his first basket, and Jordan Crawford swiped an Omaha pass for a jam on the other end, but Omaha held a 13-6 at the midway point of the first half. South Dakota found its footing in Baxter Arena in the back half of the first, scoring 22 points to close the deficit to just one point, 29-28, going into the break. 
 
Crawford paced the team with 11 points on 5-of-10 shooting and two steals. Buntyn added eight points, connecting on all five of his 3-pointers, while Bennion dished out three assists. 
 
Both teams shot right around the 40.0% mark from the field in the opener, but USD connected on 3-of-12 treys to Omaha's 1-of-11 from deep. Omaha outscored the Yotes in the paint 16-10 in the first and had four offensive rebounds. 
 
Fens knocked down a pair of free throws to open the second half, as the Yotes grabbed their first lead of the night, 30-29. Through the first 10 minutes of the second frame, the Yotes were efficient from the field connecting on 4-of-7 attempts from the field with a pair of triples but committed seven turnovers as Omaha held onto their one-point lead, 42-41, with 10 minutes to go. 
 
Crawford elevated his game in the second half, pouring in 16 points on 5-of-6 shooting with four 3-pointers, while Fens went to work for 14 points on 5-of-6 shooting.
 
Back-to-back 3-pointers from Crawford gave the Yotes a 57-55 lead with 4:19 left in the game, a lead they would hold onto the rest of the way. A pair of dunks from Fens in a minute span kept the momentum on USD's side and the Yotes would close out their first road win of the season 68-64. 
 
The Coyotes are back in the SCSC Saturday to face St. Thomas at 1 p.m.
 
Notes

• South Dakota improves to 11-10 on the season, 3-3 in the conference and 1-8 on the road
• Silas Bennion made his first start as a Coyote tonight
• Jordan Crawford had a career high 27 points with 5 3-pointers
• South Dakota picked up its first road win of the season