South Dakota men's basketball falls short of win at buzzer, women's basketball drops 6th-straight
South Dakota men's basketball forward Tasos Kamateros fell short on a game-winning shot at the buzzer in USD's 87-86 loss to Coastal Carolina (6-4) Wednesday at Sanford Coyote Sports Center.
The second meeting of the season between the two teams was much more high-scoring than the first, featuring several big runs from the Coyotes — some even individual-led — but ultimately USD couldn't string together enough stops to match its strong shooting. The Coyotes hit 50% of its field goals and connected on 16 3's in the game, yet fell to 5-7 entering the Summit League slate.
Guard A.J. Plitzuweit led the South Dakota with 19 points (and five assists) in the game, getting strong contributions by every member of the starting lineup. Guard Kruz Perrott-Hunt had 18 (and six assists), Kamateros had 17, guard Mason Archambault had 12 and forward Damani Hayes had 10.
The Coyotes were cold early in the game. Coastal Carolina erupted in the first 10 minutes to lead 30-15 at one point, and despite a few South Dakota runs, seemed to be in control.
Late in the first half, South Dakota guard A.J. Plitzuweit took a transition opportunity for a layup and on the very next possession, stepped back for a 3-pointer to cut Coastal Carolina's lead to two. But the Chanticleers found their rhythm again. South Dakota lost its, turning the ball over several times, giving Coastal Carolina every opportunity to grow its lead. USD went down 50-42 at halftime and the same thing happened over and over.
Coyotes guard Kruz Perrott-Hunt spearheaded a run of its own with an and-1 an a 3 to cut it back to two points at the start of the second half, but then lost control again to let Coastal Carolina go back up 10. Archambault hit a 3 to cut it to four, and the Chanticleers staved off that run, too. Kamateros hit a few 3-pointers late in the game to start South Dakota's final push, with a 3-pointer from Plitzuweit with 55 seconds left giving USD its first lead of the second half, 86-85.
But the Coyotes couldn't add another basket, instead turning it over and fouling Chanticleers forward Essam Mostafa. Mostafa hit both free throws to retake the lead and South Dakota couldn't get the lead to change again.
South Dakota opens Summit League play Monday at 7 p.m. at Kansas City.
South Dakota women's basketball drops sixth-straight
South Dakota women's basketball dropped its sixth-straight game in a close loss to UT Martin Wednesday at Sanford Coyote Sports Center.
The Coyotes had the exact amount of rebounds as the Skyhawks, the exact amount of turnovers and just four less assists but struggled — again — to shoot the ball. USD shot 37.7% from the field and 29.6% from 3-point range. South Dakota moves onto Summit League play Monday at 4-7.
USD started the game slow but, by halftime, it looked like it was on its way to turning things around. The Coyotes went on a 12-0 run right before halftime, taking a 30-27 lead at the break. It was a balanced offensive performance: leading scorer Grace Larkins had 12, but beyond Larkins South Dakota saw some scoring bursts from several others who have been forced into more prominent offensive roles due to injuries this season.
Reserve guard Cassidy Carson scored a career-high 12 points and was one of just a few USD players to have an above-50% shooting night, hitting on 5-of-8 of her field goals. Forward Jeniah Ugofsky chipped in 11 and Morgan Hansen added eight points.
But UT Martin came out of the half on fire, outscoring USD 22-10 in the third quarter on a 2-11 shooting frame for the Coyotes. South Dakota made a comeback at the end of the game, cutting the Skyhawks lead to as little as two points, but ultimately couldn't surpass UT Martin.
South Dakota opens the Summit League schedule 7 p.m. Monday against Kansas City.
Follow Sioux Falls Argus Leader reporter Michael McCleary on Twitter @mikejmccleary.
This article originally appeared on Sioux Falls Argus Leader: USD men fall short of win at buzzer, women drop 6th-straight
