South Dakota men’s basketball takes down Denver for first Summit League victory of season

The South Dakota men’s basketball team held off Denver 91-84 to earn its first conference win of the season.

The Coyotes held a six-point lead at halftime and outscored the Pioneers by one in the second half to extend their lead to seven.

USD built their lead in the first half with their aggression driving to the rim. The Coyotes were outshot from deep but their consistent penetration led to 23 first-half free throws. South Dakota converted 16 of those while the Pioneers made only three of 10. USD ended up plus-17 in the free throw battle.

The Coyotes only outrebounded Denver by one but managed to outscore the Pioneers in second-chance points by five. They also outscored Denver by six points in the paint. The Pioneers committed four more turnovers than South Dakota but the Coyotes took advantage of the turnovers they forced, outscoring Denver in points off turnovers by six.

The Coyotes were led by Isaac Bruns and Chase Forte who each scored over 20 points. Bruns finished with 21 points on 5-for-9 shooting and was 11-for-14 from the charity stripe. He also had two steals and five rebounds. Forte ended with a game-high 22 points on 8-for-15 shooting. The guard also corralled seven rebounds and had two steals.

The South Dakota men’s basketball team will travel to Minnesota to face St. Thomas on Saturday, Jan. 11.