WELL-BALANCED JACKRABBITS DEFEAT DRAKE

Tuesday, December 15

Brookings, S.D.

6 p.m.

South Dakota State University

4-2,0-0Summit League

Drake

2-3,0-0MVC

Drake

South Dakota St.

Photo by: Inertia Sports Media/Dave Eggen

12/15/2020 9:24:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score

South Dakota State women's basketball remains unbeaten at home after defeating Drake 87-73 Tuesday night at Frost Arena.

The Jacks, now 4-2 on the season, shot a season-best 53.8 percent from the field, recorded 23 assists and outscored Drake in the paint 48-36.

Myah Selland recorded her fourth-career double-double and second of the season, scoring 21 points and grabbing 11 rebounds while dishing four assists. Tori Nelson followed with a season-high 18 points. Tylee Irwin tallied 14 points, while Lindsey Theuninck and Haley Greer added 11 and 10 points, respectively. Theuninck and Greer each added a team-high five assists.

"Great to see us bounce back after a tough road trip, quite honestly where we just didn't see the ball go in the basket very much," head coach Aaron Johnston said. "I'm really pleased with how the team played and responded. Drake is really a good team. I know their record isn't reflective of maybe how good of a team they have and they've played a really difficult schedule just as we have. They are a hard team to guard. I thought we were good enough defensively in this game and then we had certainly a really good offensive performance when we really needed it from some key players."

A hot start for the Jackrabbit offense made it 10-0 early as the Jacks made their first five field goal attempts. After Drake scored its first three baskets, State responded with another large run, this time 12 unanswered points. Drake ended the quarter on a 7-0 run, but the Jackrabbits maintained a nine-point lead (27-18).

Drake continued to reduce its deficit in the second quarter, but the Jacks were able to respond to any threat and maintained the lead. Six unanswered points, including baskets from Irwin, Selland and Mesa Byom, pushed State's lead back to double figures with 4:17 to play in the second. The Bulldogs continued to fight, but the Jacks held onto a 42-35 advantage at the half.

A 7-2 run to start the second half for the Jackrabbits brought their lead up to 12 with 8:23 to play in the third quarter. Drake responded with a 7-0 run to make it a 56-50 game midway through the quarter. The two teams traded scores in the final 4:25 of the frame with each displaying a balanced offensive attack. The Jacks maintained a 70-61 lead at the end of the third.

Offense was difficult to come by for both teams in the opening six minutes of the fourth quarter. Selland's layup with 6:35 to play broke almost a seven minute Jackrabbit scoring drought and ignited a 7-0 run. Irwin's jumper with under four minutes to play put the Jacks ahead by 12, but Drake responded with a 6-0 run to cut the lead back to single digits. However six made free throws and a Nelson layup in the final 1:35 secured the 87-73 win for the Jackrabbits.

Game Notes

South Dakota State holds a 3-2 lead over Drake in the all-time series
South Dakota State led for the entirety of tonight's contest
The Jacks finished with a season-high 87 points and 23 assists
Eight Jackrabbits scored in the contest with five reaching double figures
28 points in a quarter is a season high for State
- The last time the Jacks scored more than 28 points in a quarter was on the road against Purdue Fort Wayne last season when they scored 33 points in the third quarter
Myah Selland tied a career-high 21 points and posted her fourth-career double-double
Regan Nesheim scored the first points of her collegiate career in tonight's game
Theuninck's five assists is a season high and just one shy of her career best
Mesa Byom recorded a career-high four rebounds and two blocks

Up Next
South Dakota State begins a two-game road trip as they take on No. 20 Missouri State Saturday in Springfield, Mo. Tipoff is set for 1 p.m.

-GoJacks.com-