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Orem • Isiah Williams heard a whistle but didn't think it had anything to do with him. The Utah Valley guard then let fly what would have been the game-winning 3-pointer.
But the whistle did concern Williams, who was ruled to have stepped out of bounds 40 feet from the basket with two seconds to play. Instead, South Dakota celebrated a 72-70 upset victory against the regular-season champions in the semifinals of the Great West Conference tournament.
The No. 4 seed Coyotes (18-14) will now play No. 3 North Dakota on Saturday at 7:30 p.m. in the UCCU Center for the league championship.
Coaches from both teams refrained from answering whether the ruling was correct. The television replay revealed a questionable call at best.
"I feel terrible," said UVU coach Dick Hunsaker, not blaming the final seconds for the loss. "We needed to do a better job defensively. We needed to do a better job on the boards.
"We did not play our best game."
In a game that featured 17 lead changes, South Dakota guards Jake Thomas and Jordon Boots were vital in victory, combing for nine 3-point goals and 32 points. South Dakota converted 53 percent from the field and from beyond the arc, while outrebounding No. 1 seeded UVU (18-14) by seven. The Wolverines usually dominate the boards.
Great West women
Chicago State had its hands full with Utah Valley on Friday. However, the No. 1 seeded Cougars had a little too much firepower for the fourth seed, pulling away for an 82-64 victory in the semifinals of the Great West Conference tournament.
UVU (8-21) pulled to within seven points early in the second half, but that was as close as CSU (21-9) would allow. The Cougars will play North Dakota in the final at 4 p.m. on Saturday.
Highlights
R South Dakota converts 9 of 17 3-point attempts, while UVU makes 5 of 19.
• South Dakota outrebounds Utah Valley 39-32.