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Hardrockers’ strong second-half defeats Trojans in men’s basketball
January 14, 2011
MADISON, S.D. – The Dakota State University Trojan men's basketball team returned back home for their first home DAC conference game of the season. DSU hosted South Dakota School of Mines at the DSU Fieldhouse Friday night. The Trojans ended the first-half strong to grab a 29-22 halftime lead. SD Mines started a huge second-half rally to defeat the Trojans 68-54.
Dakota State suffered their third straight defeat and dropped their overall record to 9-8 and 1-3 in the DAC. SD Mines improved their record to 10-8 and 2-2 in the conference.
Both teams traded leads in the first 16-plus minutes of the game. With the game tied at 22-22 with less than two minutes remaining before intermission, Dakota State closed the first-half with seven straight points to lead 29-22 at halftime.
DSU shot 54.5 percent (12-for-22) from the field in the first-half compared to the Hardrockers' 33.3 percent (9-for-27).
SD Mines reeled off 21 straight points to regain their lead at 43-29 with less than 14 minutes remaining in the game.
A 3-pointer by Jesse Bean ended DSU's scoring drought with 13:30 remaining in regulation to cut the Trojans' deficit to 43-32.
Dakota State trimmed their deficit to eight points in couple occasions (45-37 with 12:15 left and 60-52 with 5:19 left in the game), but could not get any closer.
SD Mines outscored the Trojans 46-25 in the final 20 minutes of the game. The Hardrockers shot 70 percent (14-for-20) from the field in the second-half. DSU was 41.7 percent from the field (10-for-24).
Mike Larsen led the Trojans with 20 points and four steals. Bean added nine points. Jordan King dished out four assists. Spencer Adams recorded eight rebounds.
Three Hardrockers players – Kyle Doerr, Scott May and Tanner Friesen – each scored 13 points. Michael Dietz added 11 points. Doerr recorded five assists and seven rebounds. Friesen added seven rebounds.
The Hardrockers and DSU were almost even from the field. SD Mines shot 48.9 percent (23-for-47) overall from the field compared to the Trojans' 47.8 percent (22-for-46). The Hardrockers were 15-for-28 from the free-throw line (53.6 percent) compared to DSU 6-for-13 (46.2 percent).
Dakota State committed 20 turnovers in the game, while SD Mines had 17 turnovers. The Hardrockers won the rebounding battle 33-24.
DSU will look to snap their three-game losing streak as they host nationally-ranked (No. 6) Black Hills State in a DAC conference game on Saturday night. Tip-off is slated for 6 p.m. or 25 minutes after the completion of the women's game at the DSU Fieldhouse.
Nick Huntimer, Dakota State University Sports Information Director
