LINCOLN, Neb. -- Nebraska opened up a 22-point lead in the first half, then watched South Dakota cut that lead to two before the Huskers were able to turn back the upset bid 73-61 on Saturday.I was really proud of our guys to perform down the stretch, said Nebraska coach Tim Miles. South Dakota competed really hard and really, I thought, out-competed us the second half. When you get punched in the mouth, you cant look at that and say `Oh gee, whats going on, do I have any teeth left? Youve just got to swallow them, spit the blood out and keep battling.Nebraska (5-3) hit 10 of its first 15 shots, 4 of 7 from 3-point range, while the Husker defense stifled South Dakota (6-4). The Coyotes hit just 2 of their first 11 shots and turned the ball over six times in the game-opening stretch that saw Nebraska lead 26-4 with 11:23 left in the first half.We looked like Edward Scissorhands out there for the first eight minutes or so -- a lot of turnovers, just driving in there and playing volleyball, throwing it up there and seeing what happened, said South Dakota coach Craig Smith We had to adjust and once we finally kind of settled in, I really liked we saw our of team. I thought we had great resolve. Im proud of how we played when we got down 22 in a hostile environment.Nebraska led 41-21 on Jack McVeighs 3-pointer with 2:53 left in the half, but the Huskers hit just one field goal and a pair of free throws the rest of the half and the Coyotes trailed 45-31 at halftime.The Huskers made 5 of 16 shots against South Dakotas zone defense to open the second half and turned the ball over eight times. Nebraska hit 33 percent of its shots in the second half.Credit to them, said Nebraska forward Michael Jacobsen. They definitely switched defenses and pressed and did some things that kind of got us on our heels and out of our attack mindset, which I thought was pretty good at the outset of the game.Credit to them, no doubt. They definitely switched defenses and pressed and did some things that kind of got us on our heels and out of our attack mindset, which I thought was pretty good at the outset of the game.Trailing 56-42 in the second half, the Coyotes went on a 12-0 run, cutting the Husker lead to two on Matt Mooneys layup with 7:30 left. Nebraskas Tai Webster countered with a 3-pointer to push the lead back to five and McVeighs 3 with 2:45 left made it 67-58.McVeigh finished with 16 points and made 4 of 9 from behind the arc.McVeigh hit some big shots in the second half, Smith said. He got a groove going, exactly what he needed early on, hit three 3s in the first half and started feeling it. Then hit a couple big 3s in the second half when we were in the midst of a big-time run. Coach (Miles) has been upfront and honest about it, theyve got to make some threes that way.Webster scored 12 points with three 3s for Nebraska and Michael Jacobson added 11 points and grabbed 10 rebounds.BIG PICTURENebraska: Saturdays contest against South Dakota was a breather in the Huskers challenging pre-conference schedule. Nebraska played No. 11 UCLA the Friday after Thanksgiving, traveled to Clemson last week and will face No. 10 Creighton and No. 4 Kansas in its next two games.South Dakota: South Dakota, which has four players on its roster from the state of Nebraska, is off to its best start since joining NCAA Division 1 in 2008.POSTGAME COMEDYSmith was an assistant with Miles at four different schools, including Nebraska, before taking the South Dakota job two years ago. They did the postgame press conference together, turning it into a comedy act.I figured if we didnt do a joint press conference Id never get him out of here, Miles said opening the press conference.Im surprised you let me talk, Smith replied. In 11 years, I didnt say a whole lot.I had a lot of answers, Miles said.UP NEXTNebraska will host in-state rival Creighton WednesdaySouth Dakota will return to Vermillion to host Montana State Wednesday. Doug Sisk Jersey . The nimble-footed quarterback got his wish, dashing through the snow and a weary defence all the way into the NCAA record book. Jacob Rhame Jersey .J. -- Seven games into a disappointing season, New York Giants defensive catalyst Jason Pierre-Paul is getting the feeling hes back. https://www.cheapmetsjerseys.us/1880l-jacob-degrom-jersey-mets.html . Louis. To which I would say two things: 1. Where there is smoke, there is or perhaps has been a little fire. Or, in other words, the two teams would appear to have at least spoken. And spoken is defined as one calling the other to inquire, no more, no less. Tim Tebow Jersey . -- Mike Smith never saw his first NHL goal go in. New York Mets Shirts . Brad Jacobs and his Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., team took control of the game early.Calgary Stampeders quarterback Drew Tate has suffered a setback to his throwing arm. Tate returned to practice this week after suffering a strained forearm muscle early in the year. According to the Stampeders, the setback is not the same injury, but it is in the same generral area of this throwing arm.dddddddddddd Head coach and general manager John Hufnagel has not ruled Tate out as the starter this week, but his status is now in question. Kevin Glenn is second on the depth chart, but he is also dealing with an elbow injury. ' ' '