SHREVEPORT, La.--Brenda Slyt scored 14 of her game-high 21 points in the second half as North Dakota State University held off Centenary College's comeback attempt to post a 78-73 win in The Summit League women's basketball opener for both teams played Saturday, Dec. 8, in front of 206 fans at the Gold Dome.

North Dakota State (3-4, 1-0 Summit League) is scheduled to play at Oral Roberts (5-2, 1-0 Summit League) at 7:05 p.m. Monday, Dec. 10, in the Mabee Center in Tulsa, Okla. Oral Roberts defeated South Dakota State 67-57 on Saturday.

Slyt, a 6-foot senior from Climax, Minn., provided a much needed spark for the Bison in the final period for the second straight game. She connected on 5 of 7 field goal attempts and all four free throws tries. Slyt also tied a career-high with three steals.

Slyt led a group of four NDSU players in double-figures scoring. Amanda Girodat recorded a "double-double" with 11 points and 10 assists, while Lisa Bue finished with 17 points. Freshman Abby Plucker netted a season-high 12 points including all six free throw attempts.

Bue scored 15 of her points in the opening half as North Dakota State raced out to the large lead.

North Dakota State led 46-28 at halftime and held a double-digit lead for a majority of the second half until the Ladies (2-7, 0-1 Summit League) put together a run that cut the deficit to seven points several times in the final five minutes.

Ashley Jackson and Monique Jefferson picked up the pace for Centenary in the second half. The Ladies played without leading scorer Cierra Bush, who missed with a knee injury sustained against McNeese State on Wednesday night.

Jefferson, who scored 14 of her 16 points in the second period, hit a jumper to cut the NDSU lead to 68-61 with 4:38 left. However, Slyt nailed a jumper and Jerri Penley put in an offensive rebound to build the lead back.

Jackson hit 1 of 2 free throws to trim the margin to 72-64 with 1:15 remaining. However, Girodat, Slyt and Plucker each hit a pair of free throws to keep the Ladies at a distance down the stretch. Jackson scored 12 of her team-hgh 18 points in the first half.

Jefferson's three-pointer at the buzzer made the final.

Aided by their second half flurry, Centenary shot 44.4 percent from the field compared to 38.2 percent for NDSU. The Bison hit 20 of 25 free throws for 80 percent compared to 13 of 19 for 68.4 percent for the Ladies.

North Dakota State held a 42-39 advantage in rebounding led by Bue's game-high nine boards and eight from Plucker. Centenary had 20 turnovers compared to 17 for NDSU.