DURANGO, Colo. --- The South Dakota School of Mines women's basketball team got things rolling in the second half of play Saturday evening and defeated the Texas University – Permian Basin, 78-72, during the Conference Crossover Classic in Durango, Colo.
After trailing by seven points at the end of the first quarter, 21-14, and trailed by as much as 11, midway through the second quarter, SD Mines' offense sprang into action. By halftime the Hardrockers trailed the Falcons by just six points, 35-29, and then kept the momentum over the final 20 minutes.
SD Mines outscored TUPB 19-13 and went into the fourth period with a 48-48 tie. The Hardrockers went up by as much as 10 points in the final frame and outscored the Falcons, 30-24, to earn their second win of the season.
The Hardrockers shot 48 percent in the game hitting 24-50 shots, including 10-25 from behind the arc. They also had a 20-28 showing from the free throw line (71 percent). The Falcons finished with 37 percent shooting from the field converting 26-70, including 9-31 from three-point range. They added 11-18 from the foul line for 61 percent.
The 'Rockers came down with 35 rebounds, had 18 assists and two steals. TUPB had 41 rebounds, 12 assists, seven steals and one block.
Individually for the Hardrockers, sophomore Cooper Courtney exploded for a 36-point performance, including five three-pointers and 9-10 from the free throw line. Fellow sophomore Sami Steffeck tacked on 13 points (three from behind the arc), senior Payton Humpal added 11 markers and junior Taylor Molstad contributed with eight points. Sophomore Anna Haugen excelled at crashing the boards coming down with 12.
SD Mines (2-0) will have its home opener this weekend taking on Johnson and Wales on Friday and Grace University on Saturday.
