RAPID CITY - A.J. Trennepohl played by far his best game as a collegian and South Dakota School of Mines rallied for an 80-70 win over Dana College (Neb.) to close out the U.S. Bank Thanksgiving Classic on Saturday at Goodell Gymnasium.

The redshirt freshman from Lubbock, Texas, had an efficient night to say the least, scoring a career-high 29 points on 10-of-10 shooting, including 7-for-7 from three-point range, off the bench. He also went 2-for-2 from the free-throw line.

"That's what he's capable of doing," Mines head coach Jason Henry said. "That's what we've been waiting for … Our guys know he can shoot, we all have faith that he can shoot, it's just a matter of him stepping up and knocking them down, and not being rushed. And, obviously, he did that tonight.

"10-for-10, 7-for-7, 2-for-2 - that's a pretty cool stat-line for anybody."

With the score tied 59-59 with 6 minutes left in the game, the young Mines squad went on a 12-2 run to get some breathing room.

Trennepohl got the run going with a 3. Redshirt freshman Brent Cass was then flagrantly fouled and sank both tosses, and sophomore Robbie Fedor added a trey to make it 67-59 with 4:38 to go.

Following a bucket by Dana's Gabe Bross, Trennepohl hit another 3 and junior Donny DeGooyer closed out the run with a charity toss to stake the 'Rockers to a 10-point lead - 71-61 - with 2:07 remaining.

Henry said the 'Rockers will have a lot of youth on the floor all season, with three and sometimes four freshman playing at the same time.

"That's just the way it is with the guys we have," he added. "You know, they're playing their tails off all the time and I'm excited for them to get a win, but there's still a long ways to go.

"We had 22 turnovers. That's just absolutely our Achilles heal this year and we have to do a better job taking care of the ball."

Dana controlled the tempo for much of the first half, leading by as many as nine points. But Trennepohl kept his squad in it, coming off the bench and scoring 15 consecutive 'Rocker points. The Vikings led 35-31 at halftime.

Mines came out of the locker room determined to establish post Brandon Smith down low - and it worked.

Smith scored eight of the 'Rockers' first 10 second-half points to open things up for Trennepohl and company on the perimeter. The 6-foot-8 junior scored 13 of his 19 points in the second half, and finished 7-for-8 from the field and 5-for-7 from the line.

Cass added nine points, DeGooyer had six points and six rebounds, and Scott May dished out eight assists for Mines, which shot 65 percent (26-for-40) from the field.

Doug Huston led Dana (5-5) with 15 points. Reserves Zach Genant and A.J. Arkfeld added 11 points apiece and Eric Maassen tallied 10.

South Dakota School of Mines (2-6) plays an exhibition game at Chadron State on Wednesday before taking on Presentation College in Aberdeen on Saturday.

NOTES: The Kid Rockers Basketball Camp will be on Dec. 8 from 9:30 to 11 a.m. at Goodell Gymnasium.

The camp is open for boys and girls in grades K-6. The entry fee is $25 per Rocker, $40 for two in the same family and $50 for three in the same family.

Each participant will get a t-shirt, a Kid Rocker basketball and entry into all South Dakota School of Mines homes games when they wear their shirt. Participants will also perform at halftime of the Rocky Mountain game on Dec. 8.

For more information or to sign up, call Eric Glenn at (605) 355-3024. Forms can also be found at http://www.sdsmt.edu/athletics or picked up at the SDSMT athletic offices in the King Center.