DSU Basketball Split Weekend Games

After having been swept on Friday night on the first full weekend of conference play, the Dakota State Men’s and Women’s basketball teams picked up solid victories at Dickinson State on Saturday.

Friday saw the Women get off to a slow start versus Valley City State, but Saturday was much different. With an up-tempo defense that led to transition buckets, DSU led 25-11 after one quarter versus the Blue Hawks. The 2nd quarter also saw strong defensive play, as the Trojans held a 44-20 lead at the break. Dickinson would mount a comeback after falling behind by 25 points, using a barrage of three’s and outscored Dakota State 25-13 in the third. Dakota State returned to form in the fourth and came away with an 82-56 win, picking up their first conference win of the season. 

Trojans shot 47 percent in the game, limited the turnovers and out-rebounded Dickinson State 52-29. Morgan Koepsell finished with 18 points and 12 rebounds, Savannah Walsdorf 14 points/7 boards and got a strong contribution up and down the line-up. It was the fifth straight win over Dickinson for the Women.

In the Men’s game, after trading buckets early, Dickinson State got out to a 21-11 advantage with 11 minutes to go in the first half. Dakota State slowly chipped away at the lead and went ahead 31-30 with a few minutes left. They would lead by four at the break. Anthony Costello had 19 of his game high 28 points in the first twenty minutes of the game. The Blue Hawks would tie the game at 44 in the second half, but after that Dakota State would lead the rest of the way. Free-throws down the stretch iced the game, as the Men picked up their first conference victory of the season via an 83-74 score.

Even after trailing by ten points, DSU played a good first half and backed that up with an even better second half. Solid use of the shot clock and excellent shot selection propelled the Trojans to the win. They shot 56 percent in the game and 18 of 20 from the free-throw line. Costello finished with a double double, 13 rebounds to go along with his game high points and Josh McGreal poured in 22 points, many coming in the second half.

With the weekend split, DSU Basketball will be back in action this upcoming weekend, hosting Mayville State on Friday Night and Presentation College on Saturday Afternoon.