Coyotes lose Summit opener at buzzer

VERMILLION, S.D.—Western Illinois guard Ceola Clark hit a running jumper in the lane as time expired to lift the Leathernecks to a 73-71 win against South Dakota in the Summit League opener for both teams.

The game-winner was preceded by a game-tying three-pointer by South Dakota guard Juevol Myles with five seconds left. With no timeouts left on either side, the inbounds pass came to Clark who drove past one defender to reach the lane and got a shot off over a second USD defender that touched nothing but net.

Clark made four, first-half treys and led Western Illinois (4-3, 1-0 Summit) with 20 points. Don McAvoy added 16 and Terell Parks finished with 14 points and nine boards.

South Dakota (3-4, 0-1) scored 52 second-half points against a defense that came into the contest allowing 47 points per game. The Coyotes erased a 14-point deficit early in the second half and a 10-point deficit in less than three minutes at the end, but never got a lead. Myles led all scorers with 21 points.