South Dakota Kicks Off 2025 with a Thrilling Win Against Denver!

DENVER, Colo. — The Coyotes entered Denver to commence the Summit League schedule, and outstanding performances from Grace Larkins and Alexi Hempe propelled South Dakota to a 77-71 triumph over Denver Thursday evening at Hamilton Gymnasium in Denver, Colorado.
 
Alexi Hempe’s second of a career-best eight three-pointers came with 1.5 seconds remaining in the first quarter, granting South Dakota a 16-14 advantage after one. Hempe’s eight three-pointers fell just one shy of the program record of nine, established by Erin Bourne vs William Penn (Iowa) during the 2003-04 season.
 
While Hempe was en route to a career-high 26 points, Grace Larkins was well on her way to achieving her 20^th career double-double. Larkins led the Coyotes with 29 points, 13 rebounds, and seven assists. The Summit League’s top scorer directed the game in points Thursday night.
 
The Coyotes expanded their lead to eight, 34-26, at halftime, but the Pioneers would not give up easily. A rapid start to the third quarter for the Pioneers allowed them to re-enter the contest. The Coyotes delivered a season-best performance in shooting, sinking 54% of their shots from the field and 54.5% from beyond the arc, utilizing Hempe’s hot shooting in the fourth quarter to help secure the win.
 
Hempe sank three triples to keep the Coyotes a step ahead of Denver in the final quarter, but it was Carley Duffney’s second three-pointer of the match with 52 seconds left that provided the Coyotes the lead for good. Duffney was the third Coyote to achieve double figures, tallying 12 points, adding three rebounds, three assists, and two steals. Coral Mason contributed seven points, including two corner three-pointers.
 
South Dakota will be back on the court Saturday. The Coyotes are set to face Oral Roberts at 2 p.m. inside the Mabee Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
 
NOTABLES
• The Coyotes stand at 7-8 for the season, 1-0 in conference play, and 1-3 in road games.
• It remains a career year for Alexi Hempe, who set new records in three-pointers (8) and points (26) Thursday.
• Grace Larkins concluded just one point short of her third 30-point game of the season, scoring 29 with 13 rebounds and seven assists.
• Larkins achieved her 20^th career double-double, and sixth this season. The 13 rebounds match a season high.
• Larkins and Hempe collectively accounted for 55 of USD’s 77 points. Thursday marked the third occasion this season that both Hempe and Larkins surpassed 20 points in the same game.
• Carley Duffney gave the Coyotes the lead with a late three-pointer that marked her 10-plus points for the 10^th time this season. She finished with 12 in the victory.
• South Dakota showcased their most effective shooting performance of the season Thursday, converting 54% of their field-goal attempts and making over half of their three-pointers (12-22) in a game for the first time this season.
• Thursday was the first occasion this season the Coyotes won despite committing more than 12 turnovers (17).
• The Coyotes are currently 6-1 when achieving a better field-goal percentage than their opponent and 7-2 when leading at halftime.
• Thursday’s match was the third time this season South Dakota has out-rebounded their rival (31-25), and the Coyotes have a record of 2-1 in these circumstances.
• South Dakota now holds a record of 2-0 in Thursday games.