VERMILLION, S.D. – The North Dakota State women’s basketball team edged South Dakota, 79-76, at Sanford Coyote Sports Center on Saturday afternoon.
With the win, the Bison improve to 10-5 (4-1 Summit) overall on the season and snapped a 13-game losing skid against the Coyotes (8-9, 4-2 Summit) dating back to 2017. It also marked the first win for NDSU at South Dakota since 2013. Additionally, the Bison snapped the Coyotes’ 43-game win streak against Summit League opponents at home dating back to the 2016-17 season.
Heaven Hamling paced NDSU with a team-high 22 points on 9-of-22 shooting from the field. She tied a season-high seven rebounds and handed out a team-best six assists. Taylor Brown reached double figures in the scoring column for the sixth time this season with 16 points to go along with seven rebounds and three assists. Elle Evans also netted 16 points on 4-of-7 shooting from three.
As a team, NDSU shot 49.2 percent (30-61) from the field with seven different players reaching the scoring column. The Bison also shot 28.0 percent (7-25) from three and 80.0 percent (12-15) from the free throw line. Additionally, NDSU tallied 44 points in the paint and 22 points off of turnovers.
Both teams battled through the first three quarters as South Dakota took a 61-54 advantage into the final frame. The Coyotes then opened up their largest lead of the contest, 63-55, after Carley Duffney connected on a pair of free throws with 8:01 to play. The Bison fought their way back to cut the deficit down to two, 68-66, following a fastbreak layup and free throw from Hamling with 4:29 remaining.
NDSU continued to surge putting together five straight points after a triple from Abby Schulte and jumper from Hamling to lock the contest, 75-75, with 1:09 to play. Following a free throw from Grace Larkins, Hamling closed the game out for NDSU coming up with a layup and two clutch free throws with under 11 seconds to play to seal the 79-76 victory.
NDSU will be back in action hosting Denver on Thursday night. Tip-off is set for 7:00 p.m. at Scheels Center.
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