Men's basketball preps for North Dakota

Wednesday, February 19

Grand Forks, N.D.

7 p.m.

South Dakota State University

North Dakota

Photo by: McKenzie Hansen

2/17/2020 4:00:00 PM | Men's Basketball

GAME 29: South Dakota State (20-8, 11-2) at North Dakota (12-14, 6-6)

When	Wednesday, Feb. 19 \| 7 p.m.
Where	Betty Engelstad Sioux Center \| Grand Forks, North Dakota
Live Audio / Radio	Jackrabbits All-Access \| Jackrabbit Sports Network I WNAX 570 AM \| Tyler Merriam
Television / Live Video	Midco Sports Network \| ESPN+ \| UND Insider \| Alex Heinert & Zachary Dosch
Live Stats	FightingHawks.com
Game Notes	South Dakota State
Social Media	Twitter I Facebook

Previewing the Game
South Dakota State heads for Grand Forks, North Dakota Wednesday to face the North Dakota Fighting Hawks. The Jackrabbits tip against UND at 7 p.m. from the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center.

The Jackrabbits (20-8, 11-2 Summit League) have won six straight entering the week and are alone in first in the Summit League Standings, one-half game ahead of North Dakota State.

North Dakota (12-14, 6-6 Summit League) picked off Western Illinois in Macomb, Illinois last Saturday, 86-83.

The Jackrabbits trail in the all-time series, 104-86, but hold an 8-1 record in Division I matchups with seven consecutive wins against the Fighting Hawks. SDSU took down UND in Brookings earlier this season, 87-66. Douglas Wilson scored 22 points in that game, while Matt Mims (14 points), Alou Dillon (12 points) and Noah Freidel (16 points) also reached double figures.

About South Dakota State
Three games remain in South Dakota State's race to the Summit and the Jackrabbits control their own destiny in the hunt for the No. 1 seed in next month's league championships. The Jackrabbits have road games at North Dakota and North Dakota State in the final month of the season, and will host South Dakota next weekend in the final home game of 2019-20.

The Jackrabbits have shot 50 percent of better in all but one league contest this season, separating themselves from the pack with a plus-11.2 scoring margin against Summit League teams.

SDSU's defensive unit has limited opponents to 69.5 points per game on the season, holding teams under 60 in seven contests. The Jackrabbits have allowed 80 or more points in just three games.

Offensively, the Jackrabbits are shooting 48.8 percent from the field, 34.9 percent from deep and 70.9 percent from the line. The charity stripe has been an important factor in SDSU's success, as the Jacks are 16-1 in games where it shoots more free throws than its opponent.

Douglas Wilson leads the team with 18 points and 6.4 rebounds per game, tallying 10 20-plus scoring performances and four double-doubles this year. Wilson has buried 10 or more field goals in five games and currently sits fourth in the league in scoring average. The two-time NJCAA All-American and 2018-19 NJCAA Player of the Year is shooting 61.8 percent from the field and has scored 10 or more in all 12 league appearances (missing the South Dakota game due to injury).

Matt Dentlinger, second on the team with 12.4 points and 6.1 rebounds per contest, is shooting 69.4 percent against league opponents and posted 20-point games against South Dakota (26), North Dakota State (21) and Denver (22). The Arcadia, Iowa native sank 13 consecutive field goal attempts between the Arizona, Mississippi Valley State and Samford contests (going 8-for-8 against MVSU) earlier this year, and has reached double figures in 18 games, including 10 league games. Dentlinger is coming off a monster week with two double-doubles, averaging 20 points and 10.5 rebounds per game, hitting all eight of his field goals (and two free throws) in a 18-10 showing against Purdue Fort Wayne.

Wilson and Dentlinger rank 11th and 14th nationally in field goal percentage, as South Dakota State is the only team to feature two players in the top 50 in that category.

Noah Freidel broke into double figures this month and sits at 10.1 points per game. The Tea, South Dakota native has eight double-digit scoring games in league play, including three 20-plus efforts. He scored 28 with six 3-pointers at Omaha and broke the 20-point mark in both games against Oral Roberts (23 with four 3-pointers on Jan. 2, and 22 with four 3-pointers on Jan. 29). Freidel just missed a triple-double Feb. 14 against Denver, scoring all 16 of his points in the second half to go with seven rebounds and a team-high eight assists. Freidel, the 2019 Argus Leader Class A Player of the Year, sits third on the team in scoring and second in 3-pointers (50) while shooting 42.9 percent from the field. He has buried five or more 3s in two games this year and has come up with 17 steals and 48 assists. Freidel has 23 assists over the past five games.

Alex Arians is one of two Jackrabbits to start all 28 games and is fourth in scoring at 8.9 points per game. He is third in rebounds (5.8 per game) and has 24 steals, 48 assists and 32 3-pointers. The Madison, Wisconsin guard has scored 10 or more in 12 games this year and matched his career-high with 19 points against Omaha on Feb. 8. Arians also scored 16 at South Dakota, and against North Dakota State tallied 14 points, 11 rebounds and six assists, and did not commit a turnover in 39 minutes for his second double-double performance of the year.

David Wingett (8.7 points per game) has started the last 14 contests and leads the team with 53 3-pointers. He has buried three or more from deep in eight games. The Winnebago, Nebraska native lit up the nets for a career-best 24 points (with six 3s) at Purdue Fort Wayne and had 13 with a trio of 3-pointers at South Dakota.

Baylor Scheierman, who earned his first career start at South Dakota, has 19 3-pointers and 60 assists in his first collegiate season, averaging 6.1 points over 19.7 minutes per contest. The Aurora, Nebraska guard has also pulled down 4.5 boards on average, helping SDSU to a plus-4.9 rebounding margin at 38.8 boards per contest.

About the Fighting Hawks
North Dakota is in a two-way tie with Omaha for fifth in the Summit League standings and has four games left in its regular season.

Four Fighting Hawks are averaging double figures on the season (and in league-only games).

Marlon Stewart is second in the Summit League at 18.1 points per game, burying 49 3-pointers on the season to go with 132 assists, 18 steals and a 5.8 rebounding average.

De'Sean Allen-Eikens (14.3 points per game) and Kienan Walter (11.5 points per game) are second and fourth on the team in scoring, respectively, while Filip Rebraca has averaged a near-double-double of 13.6 points and nine rebounds per game. Rebraca's 11 total double-doubles leads the Fighting Hawks, as the UND post is shooting 58.2 percent from the field and 27 blocks.

North Dakota has averaged 74.8 points in league games and is shooting 44.1 percent as a team in Summit League play. The Fighting Hawks have seen teams shoot 46.1 percent against them, however, and are minus-1.7 in scoring margin against Summit squads.

Paul Sather is in his first season leading North Dakota and 16th year overall as a head coach. He is 12-14 with the Fighting Hawks and 294-165 in his career on the bench.

A South Dakota State Win Would ...
Make the Jackrabbits 21-8 on the year, 12-2 in Summit League play and 87-104 all-time against the Fighting Hawks … extend South Dakota State's current winning streak to seven games … help SDSU maintain a half-game lead on North Dakota State for first-place in the Summit League standings … give the Jackrabbits a 1,556-1,048-1 program mark.

A South Dakota State Loss Would ...
Drop the Jackrabbits to 20-9 on the season and 11-3 in Summit League play … move SDSU to 86-105 all-time against North Dakota and split the regular season series … snap the Jackrabbits' six-game winning streak … give South Dakota State a 1,555-1,049-1 program mark.

Looking Ahead
While South Dakota State's focus will remain on the next game ahead of them, the Summit League Championship picture is starting to come into view with two weeks remaining.

South Dakota State and North Dakota State will each play North Dakota and South Dakota this week. If both teams win their Wednesday contests, the two will be locked into top-two seeds and continue the fight for the No. 1 seed and regular season title. Should South Dakota defeat the Bison, all three teams will continue to be eligible for a No. 1 or 2 seed.

The Jackrabbits, who have already secured a top-three seat to guarantee a finish higher than their preseason slot, conclude their regular season Feb. 27 at North Dakota State.

Peaking at the Right Time
Though the Jackrabbits put together a successful nonconference season to start the 2020 season off on the right foot, SDSU's play has seen a noticeable uptick across several statistical areas during league play.

After sinking just 103 3-pointers through 15 nonleague games (at a clip of 30.4 percent), the Jackrabbits are 101 of 246 from deep in 13 league games with a long range shooting percentage of 41.1 percent. Additionally, four players have double-digit 3s in that span.
SDSU has been more selective of shots in league play, leading to an increase of seven points per game (74.3 to 81.3). With that, the Jacks are shooting 52.9 percent in league games compared to a .453 rate in the first 15 contests in 2019-20.
In line with better shot selection, SDSU has seen an uptick in assists per game (13.5 to 15.2) and a decrease in turnovers per contest (14.1 to 12.3).
After averaging 7.3 points per game in nonleague play, Noah Freidel and Alex Arians have posted scoring averages of 13.5 and 10.6, respectively, in the last 13 contests.
David Wingett (26 3-pointers), Freidel (28 3s), Arians (19 3s) and Matt Mims (14 3-pointers) have lit up the nets from deep against Summit League opponents, with Mims burying two or more treys in four league games.

Sustained Success; Youth Movement
The Jackrabbits have won more games in the past three seasons than any other Summit League program. The 2017-18 and 2018-19 success was fueled by experienced squads and all-time great scorers, but the 2019-20 team has filled Frost Arena with a youthful energy.

The Jackrabbits have gone 72-24 (38-5 Summit League) dating back to the 2017-18 season. Those win totals are double-digits higher than any other team.

SDSU sits as the 343rd youngest team out of 353 NCAA Division I teams in KenPom's experience rankings. The experience value is based on a player's eligibility (freshmen have zero years, sophomores have one year, etc.), and players who appear in less than 10 percent of their team's minutes are not included in the calculations.

In addition to the team's KenPom youth ranking, the Jackrabbits returned just 16.9 percent of their scoring from 2018-19. SDSU's 15.8 points per game returning was sixth-lowest, and the 16.9 percent mark was third-lowest (according to available records).

Jackrabbits Honored by Summit League
South Dakota State has picked up two Summit League Men's Basketball Athlete of the Week awards this season.

Douglas Wilson (Nov. 11) – Wilson posted a monster debut week for the Jacks, averaging 21 points and 8.7 rebounds over three double-figure scoring performances (and Jackrabbit wins). Wilson scored 24, 13 and 26 against UTRGV, Peru State and CSU Bakersfield.
Matt Dentlinger (Feb. 17) – Dentlinger had two double-doubles in a pair of Jackrabbit wins. He had 22 points with 11 rebounds against Denver, then scored 18 and grabbed 10 boards against Purdue Fort Wayne. Dentlinger also swatted a career-high five blocks in the win over the 'Dons.

Trending Positive
The Jackrabbits have seen two trends develop through the 2019-20 season tied to free throws and rebounds.

The Jackrabbits are 16-1 in games where they attempt more free throws than their opponent, and 4-7 in the 11 games where opponents have attempt more at the charity stripe.
South Dakota State is 18-1 when out-performing (or tying) opponents on the boards and are just 2-7 when opponents outrebound the Jackrabbits.

#FearFrost

The Jacks own a 118-6 record at Frost Arena over the last nine seasons dating back to 2011-12, which includes perfect home records in five seasons during that span, which includes two home winning streaks of 30 or more games and three of 25 or more.
SDSU's .956 home winning percentage over the past five years (back to 2015-16) is also the nation's best mark in that span.
The Jackrabbits' current home winning streak of 23 games is tied for second-longest in NCAA Division I. Gonzaga leads the nation with 36 straight home wins, while Prairie View A&M is matching the Jacks with 23 straight at home. Florida State (20), Oregon (19 and Murray State (19) are next on the list.
Since 2011-12, South Dakota State has won 95.1 percent of its home games, a mark that top all Division I programs in that span. South Dakota State won 34 consecutive games from Jan. 30, 2014 to Dec. 28, 2016. It ended as the nation's second-longest active streak.
The Jackrabbits won 30 consecutive home games from Jan. 29, 2011 to Nov. 14, 2013.
SDSU won 26 consecutive home games from Dec. 31, 2016 to Dec. 22, 2018.
South Dakota State won 34 consecutive home nonconference games inside Frost Arena from Dec. 31, 2016 to Dec. 22, 2018. That mark was the fourth-longest active streak when it ended.
SDSU put together undefeated seasons inside Frost Arena the following years: 1984-85 (18-0), 2002-03 (17-0), 2011-12 (14-0), 2012-13 (13-0), 2014-15 (13-0), 2015-16 (12-0) and 2017-18 (15-0). They are 15-0 so far in 2020-21 and have one home game left in the regular season.

Quick Hits

SDSU has held opponents under 70 points 15 times this season, posting a 14-1 record in those games. The lone loss in 2019-20 came at Indiana, where the Jacks held the Hoosiers to a season-low in points. The Jackrabbits went 13-0 when holding opponents under 70 last season (11-9 when not) and were 12-0 in those games during the 2017-18 season.
The Jackrabbits have trailed for less than one minute in seven games this season, including three straight to end nonleague play. State did not trail against Purdue Fort Wayne (1/11) or North Dakota State (1/22) in league play.
SDSU has held opponents to single-digit free throw attempts six times this season, including back-to-back games against Nebraska-Kearney (four attempts) and Florida Gulf Coast (eight attempts).
10 different Jackrabbits have posted double-digit scoring performances this season.
Five Jackrabbits have scored in double figures three times this season: at CSU Bakersfield, versus Western Illinois and at Denver.
Douglas Wilson led the team in points (25), rebounds (10), steals (two) and blocks (four), and was tied for the lead in assists (four) against Oral Roberts Jan. 2.
Noah Freidel led the team in points (22), assists (six) and steals (two) and was tied for the lead in rebounds (seven) at Oral Roberts Jan. 29.
South Dakota State has played five games against opponents this year it had not previously met.
The Jackrabbits held Mississippi Valley State to 17 first-half points on Nov. 24, 2019. That is the fewest since South Dakota State held Chadron State to 12 first-half points on Nov. 24, 2014.
SDSU's 93-91 victory over CSU Bakersfield saw five Jackrabbits reach double figures for the first time in 2019-20. The feat last happened Jan. 31, 2019 against Oral Roberts.
State posted back-to-back 50-rebound games to open the season. The last time an SDSU program had 50-plus rebounds in consecutive games was Dec. 15 and 27, 2002 against Finlandia (60) and Fort Lewis (58). The Jacks also had three-straight games with 50-plus rebounds that season (2002): Nov. 23, 29 and 30.
Douglas Wilson's 24 points on Nov. 5 are the most in a Jackrabbit debut dating back to 2000-01, when game-by-game statistics were readily available.
At least one Jackrabbit has scored in double figures over the last 402 games dating back to Jan. 12, 2008 at IUPUI when Anthony Cordova had nine points to lead the Jacks.
State has made at least one 3-pointer in 432 consecutive games. The last time the Jackrabbits did not make a 3-point field goal was Jan. 25, 2007
South Dakota State is 94-18 all-time in home openers (where records available). Dating back to 2004-05, SDSU's first year of DI transition, the Jacks are 12-4 in those games.
SDSU is 75-39 in season-openers all-time. The Jacks are 8-8 in season-opening games at the Division I level. The Jackrabbits are 7-6 in Summit League openers.

Basketball Coaches Show Every Monday
The Jackrabbit Basketball Coaches Show is live at Cubby's Sports Bar and Grill in downtown Brookings Monday evenings at 6 p.m. The hour-long show covering the 2019-20 basketball season tips off every Monday through March 2.

Hosted by Tyler Merriam, the weekly look at the South Dakota State basketball teams features interviews with head men's coach Eric Henderson and head women's coach Aaron Johnston, as well as segments with Jackrabbit student-athletes and members of the coaching staff.

Fans can attend in person and will be eligible for weekly drawings.

The show also airs live on flagship radio station WNAX 570 AM and Jackrabbit Sports Network affiliates, and can be heard live or on-demand for free via Jackrabbits All-Access and the Jackrabbit App.

Jackrabbits Featured on All-Decade Teams
Former Jackrabbits Mike Daum and Nate Wolters were featured on All-Decade Teams, announced Dec. 31 as 2019 came to an end.

CollegeInsider.com featured Daum and Wolters on the Lou Henson Award team, while Daum also earned Lute Olson Award All-Decade team honors from the organization.

Mid-Major Madness also tabbed Daum as one of 10 selections to its all-decade squad.

Daum posted a 22.4 career scoring average and poured in 3,067 points, closing his time as Division I's No. 7 all-time scorer. He was a 2018-19 consensus All-American and a three-time Summit League Player of the Year.

Wolters wreaked havoc on defenses and closed his career with 2,352 points, 668 assists and 601 rebounds. He was a two-time Associated Press All-American, earning third-team honors as a senior, and picked up a second team NABC All-American nod in 2013.

Mfum Enrolls Early; Will Redshirt
Jackrabbit men's basketball signee William Mfum has enrolled at South Dakota State for the spring 2020 semester and will redshirt with the team. He is eligible to practice throughout the semester, and will look to make his debut in the 2020-21 season.

William Mfum graduated in December from Spring Creek Academy (Plano, Texas). Mfum will redshirt this semester and practice with the team after leaving Spring Creek on a high note, earning All-Texas Christian Athletic League and All-City First Team honors as a junior. Mfum averaged 19.7 points, 6.4 rebounds and 3.9 assists per game in 2018-19, burying 34 3-pointers and hitting 47 percent from the field. The 6-2 guard scored 20 or more points in nine games a year ago and had one double-double. Originally from Columbus, Ohio, Mfum is the son of Stella Nyarko and Seth Adjei and plans to major in business management.

Jackrabbits in Two Scheduling Agreements
Summit League teams are in year two of scheduling agreements with the Western Athletic Conference and Big Sky, and this year claimed a 5-3 win in the WAC series.

The Jackrabbits took on Grand Canyon last year in the first year of the Summit League/WAC challenge, defeating the Lopes in the 2018-19 season opener. Year two of the challenge sent SDSU to face CSU Bakersfield Nov. 9, where the Jacks claimed a 93-91 double-overtime win.

The scheduling agreement with the Big Sky is a four-year contract. The Jackrabbits will play the following games as part of the deal:

2018-19: Montana (home; L, 74-85), Eastern Washington (away; W, 74-64)
2019-20: Idaho (home; W, 85-57), Montana State (away; L, 70-77)
2020-21: Eastern Washington (home), Montana (away)
2021-22: Montana State (home), Idaho (away)

Tough Tests
South Dakota State played four Power Five (ACC, SEC, Big 12, Big Ten, PAC-12) opponents in the 2019-20 nonleague season, facing USC, Nebraska, Arizona and Indiana in November. Though the Jacks went winless in those games, they led for a majority of the contest at Arizona, and held Indiana (a top-10 scoring offense) to a season-low 64 points.

South Dakota State has seven wins over Power Five programs since joining The Summit League in 2007, picking up victories over Iowa State (2008), Iowa (2010 and 2017), Washington (2011), TCU (2015), Minnesota (2015) and Ole Miss (2017).

SDSU's wins over Iowa and Ole Miss in 2017-18 came in the shortest time frame of any Summit League team since 1998 (seven days). The Jackrabbits are the fifth league team to post a win over separate Power Five conferences in the same regular season, and the first to do it since 2009.

Jacks Picked Fifth in Preseason Poll
South Dakota State men's basketball earned two first-place votes and was tabbed fifth in the 2019-20 Summit League men's basketball preseason poll, released in October.

The poll is voted on by league coaches, sports information directors and select media.

Jackrabbits' Last Time Out
The South Dakota State men's basketball team turned in a dominant second half performance Sunday afternoon during its 23rd straight win inside Frost Arena, topping Purdue Fort Wayne 75-64.

Facing a double-digit deficit for much of the first half, South Dakota State opened the second with 12 unanswered as the foundation of a larger 40-7 run. All told, the Jacks outscored the 'Dons by 23 over the final 20 minutes to flip the script and defend home court.

SDSU is now 20-8 overall and 11-2 in Summit League play, claiming sole possession of first-place in the league standings.

Matt Dentlinger led the way with his fifth double-double of the season, pulling down 10 rebounds to go with 18 points. Dentlinger buried all eight of his field goal attempts and both free throw efforts, and set a new career-high with five blocks.

Douglas Wilson added 17 on 7-of-8 shooting, while David Wingett had 14 points with a trio of 3-pointers. Both Jackrabbits have five rebounds, sitting third on the team in boards behind Baylor Scheierman (six rebounds, nine points) and Dentlinger.

The Mastodons used a 12-0 run of their own in the game's opening moments to take control early, and with 13:36 on the clock, went ahead 14-4. Transition dunks from Wilson and corner 3s from Wingett and Scheierman came during brief Jackrabbit scoring spurts, but South Dakota State went into the locker room trailing, 36-26.

"(Purdue Fort Wayne) had a great deal of energy to start the game," head coach Eric Henderson said. "Our first half wasn't very pretty, but our second half was pretty special. In the first 12 minutes I think we outscored them 40-7. And the most important number is that seven because it created the 40. I'm really proud of our guy's ability to bounce back and play a great second half.

"Things weren't going in a good direction and we knew we needed stops to get in a flow offensively. Our defense led to some easy baskets and got our crowd going, and when that happens we start to feel pretty confident," he said.

Jackrabbit spurts of 12, 15, six and seven unanswered filled the first 12 minutes of SDSU's second half play-by-play as SDSU pushed its lead over 20 for the first time on Wingett's free throws at 8:38 during the final run.

Opponent Last Time Out
MACOMB, Ill. - A tight finish in regulation paved the way for an overtime finish as the University of North Dakota (12-14, 6-6 Summit) picked up its first overtime win of the season at Western Illinois, 86-83. The Leathernecks (5-18, 2-11 Summit) allowed UND to go to the free-throw line 33 times in the contest.

With four Fighting Hawks finishing double figures, Marlon Stewart tallied his third double-double of the season with a career-high 17 boards with 18 points. De'Sean Allen-Eikens and Filip Rebraca each scored a team-high 19 points while Gertautas Urbonavicius scored a quiet 14 from the bench.

"I'm really proud of the way our guys were able to move on and then get back to the next play," said Head Coach Paul Sather. "We went down to their end at the finish and fought for that loose ball and that was a moment where it was an easy opportunity to be defeated mentally, but they just kept finding ways to try and make a play."

Scoring runs were the tale of the opening half as the Fighting Hawks opened the contest on a 10-6 run with Rebraca showing his craftiness in the post with North Dakota's first seven points of the game.

After UND and WIU traded baskets to a 17-16 clip, the University of North Dakota separated itself from the Leathernecks at the halfway point of the period as it went on a 17-3 run to take a 15-point lead with 4:35 left, 34-19. Western Illinois responded just before the media break and carried that momentum through the timeout as it closed the half on an 11-2 run to cut the gap at halftime, 36-29.

Billy Brown lit UND's fire to start the second half, draining a three and feeding Rebraca in the post to force a WIU timeout two minutes into the half. Stewart reached his double-double shortly thereafter when he hit a pair of shots from the free-throw line after pulling down his 10th board two possessions earlier.

High-percentage baskets were the shot of choice for UND and WIU in the first 10 minutes of play as each team shot over 56-percent from the field. As UND and WIU continued to attack, the squads found their post players in foul trouble as Rebraca and Walter each had four fouls. Western Illinois followed suit as a pair of post players also had four fouls apiece.

Allen-Eikens responded quickly for North Dakota's forwards when he scored back-to-back baskets. North Dakota's foul trouble allowed the Leatherneck duo Kobe Webster and Ben Pyle to tie game, 69-69, with 3:43 remaining in regulation.

Neither team was able to strike the final blow, resulting in the Hawks and Leathernecks first overtime game of the season with both teams knotted, 73-73.

The Fighting Hawks took advantage of five Western Illinois fouls in overtime as they went 9-for-10 at the free-throw line to pave the way for a 29-of-33 night at the charity stripe.

Last Matchup: SDSU vs. North Dakota (1/15/20)
South Dakota State men's basketball shook off a cold start and rolled to a 21-point victory Wednesday evening at Frost Arena, topping North Dakota 87-66 in front of 2,271 fans.

The Jackrabbits (14-7, 5-1 Summit League), shot 50 percent from the field (58 percent in the second half) and won their fifth straight game.

Douglas Wilson led the Jacks with 22 points in 24 minutes of action, burying nine field goals with a 4-of-5 effort at the line. Matt Mims scored a career-high 14 points off the bench, including 4-for-5 from 3-point range.

Alou Dillon added a career-high as well, finishing with 12 points on 6-of-7 shooting, tallying all of his points in the second half.

Noah Freidel added to the scoring with 16 points and recorded six rebounds, while Baylor Scheierman pulled down seven rebounds and dished four assists.

"I'm really proud of those two guys, Matt Mims and Alou Dillon, because of how those two young men stepped up in the second half," head coach Eric Henderson said. "As far as our team, we got off to a little bit of a slow start but we were able to bounce back and hang in there before a nice little run helped separate us in the first half. I didn't love our efforts on the boards in the first half, but again we hung in there. I'm certainly proud of our bench tonight and it was a great team win for the Jackrabbits."

A David Wingett 3 gave State its first lead of the night (8-7) at 15:35, but the Jacks' cold start continued as SDSU hit just two of its first 15 shots and trailed, 13-8, nine minutes into the game. From that point on, however, SDSU rolled by sinking 10 of its next 11 from the field.

A free throw from Matt Dentlinger out of the under-12 reset stopped a nearly five-minute Jackrabbit scoring drought, and soon after a run of seven consecutive from Wilson tied the game at 18. That burst included the start of a larger 27-3 run that helped the Jacks break away. Overall, SDSU outscored the Fighting Hawks by 21 over the final 10:45 of the half to carry a 41-25 lead into the locker room.

North Dakota came out of the break hot, putting together a run of eight unanswered to bring SDSU's lead to single digits before the under-16 media timeout. The Fighting Hawks came as close as six (56-50), but the Jacks ended any comeback hopes with a 9-0 run midway through the period, capping the scoring burst with a Freidel 3-pointer at 9:13.

Leading 65-50 at that point, the Jackrabbits continued to push and took their largest lead of the night (87-64) on an Aaron Fiegen free throw inside the final minute, using a strong effort from the bench to close out the win.

-GoJacks.com-