Houston blasts S. Dakota 85-58 advancing to Gulf Coast final

ESTERO, Fla. (AP) — Damyean Dotson scored 21 points and grabbed nine rebounds and Danrad Knowles added 16 points and five boards as Houston ran away from South Dakota in the second half for an 85-58 win in the Gulf Coast Showcase.

The Cougars advanced to Wednesday's championship game against Vermont, an 87-73 winner over Hofstra on Tuesday night. South Dakota will take on Hofstra for the third-place game Tuesday.

Houston (3-0) led 13-2 eight minutes into the game and never trailed. The Coyotes closed to 35-30 on a jumper by Tyler Flack, but the Cougars scored twice before the half and led by nine at the break.

Dotson was 4-for-8 shooting from the 3, and Wes Vanbeck, who had 10 points off Houston's bench, was 2 for 3 from distance.

Matt Mooney and Flack each scored 13 points for South Dakota (5-1). The Coyotes shot 9.5 percent from 3-point range, making just 2 of 21 attempts.