PEORIA, Ill. -- Bradley Women's Basketball hit a season-high 13 three-pointers, with senior Gabi Haack knocking down seven, and junior Lasha Petree scored her 1,000th-career point; but Summit League preseason favorite South Dakota answered with 13 three's of its own as the Coyotes topped the Braves 84-68 Thursday afternoon at Renaissance Coliseum.
Petree became the 21st player in Bradley (3-3 overall) to reach 1,000 career points and is just the fourth Brave in program history to reach the mark in fewer than 70 games, topping the mark in her 65th career contest. She finished with 23 points in the loss for her 20th career outing with 20 or more points.
Haack was on fire from deep, hitting 7-of-10 from beyond the arc and scored a team and season-best 24 points. The seven three-pointers was one short of matching the school record and was her third career game with seven or more triples. Haack broke into the top 25 in MVC history in career three-pointers, passing Jackie Stiles (221) and Katie Broadway (225) to move into 24th in league history at 227 triples.
Bradley committed a season-low nine turnovers against a South Dakota (3-2 overall) squad that has tallied 26 or more wins in five of the last six seasons. The Braves also had one of its best shooting performances of the young season, hitting 13-of-33 three-pointers (39.4 percent).
South Dakota held the edge on the glass, however, outrebounding Bradley 41-28. After a 2-for-9 start from beyond the arc, the Coyotes connected on 11-of-14 three-pointers over the final 27-plus minutes and finished the contest 13-for-23 (56.5 percent) from long range.
Bradley hung with South Dakota early on, thanks in part to 11 first-quarter points from Petree. South Dakota's Hannah Sjerven also had a strong first half with 17 points and 12 boards in the opening 20 minutes, helping the Coyotes to a 41-38 halftime lead.
A Haack three-pointer to open the third quarter tied the game and a Nyjah White hoop on the next possession for the Braves gave Bradley a 43-41 lead. The BU lead was 45-44 after a driving layup by Petree, but South Dakota would answer with an 18-2 run that included nine points by Sjerven.
Haack hit a pair of three's during an 11-4 Bradley spurt over the final moments of the third quarter and early portion of the fourth to help the Braves cut the deficit to eight (66-58) with just under eight minutes left. A Sjerven three-point play ended the BU run, however, and South Dakota was able to pull away down the stretch for the 84-68 victory.
Sjerven led South Dakota with 31 points and 21 rebounds, pacing three Coyotes in double figures.
Bradley closes out the non-conference portion of the schedule tomorrow with a 2 p.m. home game against Quincy at Renaissance Coliseum on ESPN+.