BROOKINGS – South Dakota State opened the second half with a 17-8 run to pull away from a 31-31 halftime tie en route to a 65-54 win over UC Irvine in its home opener on Friday night at Frost Arena.

Tevin King dropped back-to-back 3-pointers to get the Jacks going in the second half, and then, Mike Daum capped the run with a 3 and a basket in the lane for a 48-39 lead with 12:17 left to play.

The Anteaters closed to within two points – 49-47 – with 6:59 remaining, but David Jenkins, Jr., and Daum sandwiched a 3-pointer around an Anteater turnover to push the SDSU advantage to eight points at 55-47 at the 6-minute mark.

UC Irvine couldn’t get closer than five points the rest of the way as Jenkins knocked down a jumper and Ian Theisen and Brandon Key both went 4-for-4 from the line to increase the lead to the final margin.

Jenkins’ 16 points led the Jacks as Daum and Reed Tellinghuisen scored 12 points apiece. King added nine; Flatten chipped in with six points and a team-high eight boards; and Key and Theisen each notched five points.

Eyassu Worku scored 12 points to lead UC Irvine, which held a 50-37 edge in rebounds, but turned the ball over 18 times to SDSU’s eight turnovers.

The Jackrabbits, 1-0, play host to the University of Mary on Sunday at Frost Arena. Tipoff is at 2 p.m.