JACKRABBITS MEET SYRACUSE IN FIRST ROUND

Sunday, March 21

San Antonio, Texas

4:30 p.m.

South Dakota State University

Syracuse

Photo by: Richard Carlson/Inertia

3/19/2021 1:01:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Game 25 | No. 9 seed South Dakota State (21-3, 14-0) vs. No. 8 seed Syracuse (14-8, 9-4)

When	Sunday, March 21 \| 4:30 p.m.
Where	Frank Erwin Center \| Austin, Texas
Live Audio / Radio	Jackrabbits All-Access \| Jackrabbit Sports Network I WNAX 570 AM \| Scotty Kwas
Live Video	ESPN2 \| Kevin Fitzgerald & Chrisity Thomaskutty
Live Stats	Live Stats
Game Notes	South Dakota State \| Syracuse
Social Media	Twitter I Facebook

Ninth seeded South Dakota State women's basketball makes its 10th NCAA Tournament appearance in the last 13 years and its first as an at-large team when it faces No. 8 seed Syracuse Sunday, March 21 at 4:30 p.m. at the Frank Erwin Center in Austin, Texas.

The Jackrabbits are 21-3 overall and finished Summit League play 14-0 before falling to Omaha in the first round of the Summit League Tournament. State captured its seventh Summit League regular season title and went undefeated in conference play during the regular season for the first time in program history. The Jackrabbits are currently ranked No. 25 in both the AP and USA TODAY/Coaches Poll.

Syracuse enters Sunday's game 14-8 overall and 9-7 in the ACC. In the ACC Tournament two thrilling wins against Boston College and Florida State advanced the Orange to the semifinals, where they fell to top-ranked Louisville.

South Dakota State holds a 1-0 advantage over Syracuse in the all-time series. In the lone meeting between the two programs, the Jackrabbits topped Syracuse 75-64 in the second round of the 2019 NCAA Tournament.

About South Dakota State
State is outscoring its opponents 70.5-60.3 per game and holds them to 38.7 percent shooting, including 29 percent from long distance. Nationally, the Jackrabbits rank 11th in free throws made with 376. Additionally, their 87.5 winning percentage is tied for 14th in the nation.

Myah Selland leads the team with 19.2 points, 6.8 rebounds and 3.8 assists per contest. The Letcher, S.D. native is shooting 51.5 percent from the field, including 32.8 percent from beyond the arc. She is the Summit League leader in points per game. In her first game since Dec. 5, 2019, Selland made an immediate impact as she recorded 19 points, five boards, two assists and two blocks to help the Jacks defeat then-No. 15 Iowa State. Selland carried the Jackrabbits to an overtime win over then-No. 18 Gonzaga with 18 points. The redshirt junior registered a double-double as she led the Jacks with 21 points and 11 rebounds against Drake. In the win over No. 20 Missouri State, she paced the squad with yet another double-double, including 19 points and 10 rebounds, while adding a season-best six assists and four steals. In the win over Montana State, Selland registered her third-straight double-double with 27 points and 12 rebounds. On Jan. 9, she registered her fifth double-double of the season with 11 rebounds and a career-best 29 points against Western Illinois. In the first game at Omaha, Selland led all scorers with 20 points. Her 10th point in the contest marked her 1,000th career point as she became the 38th Jackrabbit all-time to reach the milestone and currently ranks 32nd on the list. On Jan. 22 against North Dakota, she tallied 19 points on a 63.6 percent shooting performance. Selland led all scorers in both wins over the Coyotes with 17 and 26 points, respectively. In the first game against USD, she also tied a career-best nine assists. Selland dropped a career-high 30 points against Oral Roberts Feb. 14, along with recording eight rebounds and six assists. She has scored in double figures in all 19 contests played. Additionally, she has recorded five double-doubles this season and seven in her career. She was named Summit League Player of the Year and earned a place on the All-Summit League First Team.

Tylee Irwin is averaging 13.3 points and 4.4 rebounds per contest, while adding 17 blocks and 23 steals. As the team's lone senior, Irwin is shooting 88.9 percent from the free throw line which ranks 13th in the nation. Against Creighton, she turned in eight points, seven rebounds and tied a career-high three blocks. Irwin played a career-high 37 minutes in the win over Gonzaga as she recorded 16 points, three rebounds and one block off the bench. She earned the starting assignment for the first time this season at Kansas State. Against Drake, she tallied 14 points in the 22 minutes she played off the bench. In the win over Montana State, she tied her career-best of 22 points while adding five rebounds and a team-best five assists. The senior continues to turn in valuable minutes for the Jackrabbits as she tallied 12 points, six rebounds and two blocks to close out non-conference play with a win over UNI. Against Western Illinois, Irwin tallied 12 and 16 points in the pair of contests, respectively. On Jan. 22 against North Dakota, she led all scorers with 20 points. She recorded 12 points in each of the wins over USD. In the first contest she led the team on the boards with seven rebounds. Irwin recorded a season-best three steals against Oral Roberts Feb. 13. She earned Summit League Player of the Week after breaking her career high in scoring both games. In the two games in Fargo, Irwin combined to score 56 points while making seven 3-pointers. On Feb. 20, she became the 39th Jackrabbit in program history to surpass 1,000 career points. She has scored in double figures in 16 contests, including the last six in a row. Irwin recorded 10 points and eight rebounds in the Summit League Tournament loss against Omaha. Irwin earned a spot on the Preseason All-Summit League Second Team for the second consecutive season, but exceeded expectations this year and was a All-Summit League First Team honoree.

Paiton Burckhard is averaging 12.9 points and 5.6 rebounds, while playing 29.1 minutes per game. She is shooting 80.8 percent from the free throw line, sinking 59 of her 73 attempts. Burckhard is one of two Jackrabbits to start all 23 games this season. In the overtime win over Gonzaga, she recorded 14 points, five rebounds and played a career-high 41 minutes. She was just shy of a double-double with 13 points and a team-leading nine rebounds in the contest at Kansas State. She paced the team with 18 points at and eight rebounds at UNI. Burckhard posted 13 points and five rebounds in the win at Missouri State. Against Montana State, she tallied 14 points and seven rebounds. In the pair of contests against Western Illinois, Burckhard posted back-to-back double-figure contests as she tallied 13 and 10 points, respectively. She tallied 12 points in each of the games at Omaha. In the second game against North Dakota she registered a double-double with 15 points and a career-best 14 rebounds. In the second win over South Dakota, Burckhard tallied 22 points and sank a career-best four 3-pointers. On Feb. 19 at North Dakota State, she registered a double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds, while dishing a career-best six assists. She paced the Jacks in both contests against Kansas City and dropped a season-best 24 in the second meeting. She had 10 points and eight rebounds in the Summit League Tournament loss against Omaha. Burckhard has scored in double figures in 19 games this season. She has registered two double-double this season and five in her career. The Aberdeen native earned All-Summit League First Team honors in back-to-back seasons.

Lindsey Theuninck has started all 24 contests for the Jackrabbits this season while averaging 4.9 points and 3.8 rebounds per game. She dished five assists and pulled down six boards against Kansas City. The redshirt junior pulled down a career-best eight rebounds against North Dakota. Theuninck tallied 10 points and five assists in the win over UNI. She dished a team-best five assists and added 11 points against Drake. She tallied nine points and a career-high five steals at Kansas State. Against then-No. 18 Gonzaga, Theuninck posted six rebounds and 11 points, including the overtime game-winning 3-pointer. She turned in nine points, while tallying a team-best six boards and three assists against Iowa State. In the win over Creighton, she added five points, four rebounds and three assists. Theuninck provided a spark for the Jacks defensively against NDSU, recording two steals Feb. 19 and three more Feb. 20. Theuninck pulled down six rebounds in the loss against Omaha.

Haley Greer is averaging 5.1 points and 2.6 assists per game. Against Gonzaga, she became the first Jackrabbit since 2000 to dish 10-plus assists in a game. Greer posted eight points and three assists to help the Jackrabbits to a victory over Creighton. She led SDSU in her debut as a Jackrabbit with a career-best 20 points as she went 4-of-6 from beyond the arc en route to being named Summit League Player of the Week. Greer scored 14 points in two games against Oral Robers and recorded a season-high three blocks Feb. 14. She dished four assists in back-to-back contests against Kansas City. She joins the Jackrabbits as a graduate transfer after spending four years at Colgate. Greer, a 5-10 guard from Winnetka, Ill., comes in after leading Colgate in 3-pointers made (34) and blocked shots (23) while averaging 8.1 points per game in 2019-20.

Sydney Stapleton recorded four points, three assists, and two steals against Iowa State. The Blaine, Minn. native added four points to the Jackrabbits efforts against Creighton. At Montana State, she tallied six points. Stapleton posted three points in a contest against both Western Illinois and Omaha. She tallied a season-best 11 points against USD as she went 3-of-3 from long distance. Stapleton hit three 3-pointers for the second time Feb. 13 to make up for her nine points. She averaged 17.1 minutes and 5.5 points per game off the bench a season ago.

The duo of Kallie Theisen and Tori Nelson return for their sophomore seasons.

Nelson has started 20 contests for the Jackrabbits and ranks fourth on the team with nine points per game and fourth in rebounds with four per contest. In round two at Omaha, she tallied 12 points. In the pair of contests against Western Illinois, she posted back-to-back double-figure contests as she tallied 11 and 10 points, respectively. The sophomore paced the squad with 18 points to lead the Jackrabbits to a home victory over UNI. She tallied a season-high 18 points against Drake. Nelson recorded 12 points against Iowa State and eight in the win over Creighton. Additionally, against Gonzaga she posted nine points, three rebounds and three assists. She recorded nine points and dished three assists at Kansas State. Nelson tired a career-best three steals at UNI. At home against UNI, Nelson paced the team with 18 points and a career-best three blocks.

Theisen appeared in 14 games and averaged 15.9 minutes before suffering a season ending injury last season. She returned to play for the first time in 397 days on Jan. 22 against North Dakota. She pulled down five and two rebounds, respectively, in the pair of games against South Dakota. Theisen recorded nine rebounds in the two wins vs. the Coyotes. Against NDSU, Theisen, who made her first-career start Feb. 20, combined for 11 rebounds and three blocks in the two wins. She pulled down 8 rebounds in the first game versus Kansas City and scored seven points the next night. Theisen has started four of the 11 games she has appeared in.

Regan Nesheim has made an immediate impact in her collegiate debut. After redshirting last season, she made her first collegiate appearance at UNI where she recorded a steal in the two minutes she played. In the wins over Drake and Missouri State she recorded five points in each contest. At Montana State she played 30 minutes and turned in a solid defensive performance with eight rebounds and two blocks. Nesheim tied her career bests of eight rebounds and five points in the rematch against UNI.

Addison Hirschman and Lauren Rongisch have played in seven contests this season, while Jordan Ferrand has appeared in 10.

A trio of freshmen in Emily Herzberg, Madysen Vlastuin and Mesa Byom will round out the 2020-21 roster. Vlastuin and Byom have boosted the Jackrabbit bench, averaging 14.1 and 7.1 minutes per game, respectively. In the home victory over Creighton, Byom sank her first collegiate 3-pointer, while Vlastuin made one against Gonzaga. Additionally, Byom recorded six points at Omaha and nine points against Kansas City. Vlastuin made nine points at Omaha as she sank three 3-pointers. Vlastuin scored 10 points against Oral Roberts Feb. 13 and made a combined five 3-pointers in the weekend series against NDSU. She scored a career-best 11 against Kansas City. The Lennox native has made at least one 3-pointer in 14 contests, including the last five. Herzberg has appeared in seven contests.

Jacks in the Postseason
Along with making its 10th NCAA Tournament appearance in 13 years, South Dakota State enters Sunday's game with a 4-9 all-time record. In their most recent appearance in 2019, the Jacks advanced to the Sweet 16 for the first time in program history after defeating No. 3 seed Syracuse and No. 11 seed Quinnipiac. SDSU's historic run ended when it fell to No. 2 seed Oregon in the Sweet 16.

Myah Selland scored 15.3 points per game, recorded 7.3 rebounds and dished 4.3 assists in the three postseason games in 2019 while Paiton Burckhard averaged 6.6 points and 4.3 rebounds. Tylee Irwin averaged six points and four rebounds.

In 2018, the No. 9 seeded Jacks fell to No. 9 seed Villanova 74-81 in overtime.

Selland Honored
HOPEWELL, N.J. — South Dakota State forward Myah Selland has been named a finalist for the Becky Hammon Mid-Major Player of the Year award presented by Her Hoop Stats.

Selland is one of five women to be named a finalist for the award. In November, the 25 members of the preseason watch list were announced, and the 15 members of the midseason watch list were announced in January. Selland was named one of 10 semifinalists in February, and the winner will be announced in late March.

Selland has been named the Summit League Player of the Week six times (Dec. 7, 21 and 28, Jan. 11, Feb. 8 and 15) this season, which sets a program record, surpassing Macy Miller's total of five during the 2017-18 season for the most by a Jackrabbit player and is tied for second all-time in Summit League women's basketball history. She was also named the Summit League Athlete of the Month for both December and January.

The Letcher native was named Summit League Player of the Year and was an All-Summit League First Team selection for the Jacks.

Johnston named to Naismith Watch List
ATLANTA, Ga. – South Dakota State women's basketball head coach Aaron Johnston is one of 15 head coaches to be named to the 2021 Werner Ladder Naismith Women's Coach of the Year Late Season Watch List, the Atlanta Tipoff Club announced Wednesday, Feb. 17.

In 21 seasons at the helm, Johnston has led the Jackrabbits to 17 20-plus win seasons, including nine straight. He ranks tied for 31st among all active Division I head coaches with 509 career wins. In 2009, Johnston was named one of four Naismith Women's College Coach of the Year finalists.

South Dakota State is ranked No. 23 in the AP Poll and No. 25 in the USA TODAY/Coaches Poll. As a team, the Jackrabbits winning percentage (89.5) ranks 13th nationally, while also ranking 15th in free throws made (286). State is 17-2 overall and lead the Summit League with a perfect 10-0 mark. Johnston has guided the Jackrabbits to three wins over top-20 teams this season, including Iowa State (then-No. 15), Gonzaga (then-No. 18) and Missouri State (then-No. 20).

The Atlanta Tipoff Club will announce the 10 semifinalists for the award on March 3, and the finalists will be revealed on March 18. The winner of the 2021 Werner Ladder Naismith Women's Coach of the Year will be announced on April 3.

Major Milestones
Head coach Aaron Johnston reached his 500th career win on Friday, Jan. 8, as the Jackrabbits defeated Western Illinois, 71-61. All of Johnston's wins have come at the helm of South Dakota State. In his 21 seasons, he has led the Jackrabbits to a Division II National Championship, nine Summit League Tournament titles, seven Summit League regular season titles, and 13 postseason appearances, including 10 NCAA Tournament berths. Johnston is South Dakota State's and the Summit League's all-time winningest women's basketball coach with a record of 513-169.

Myah Selland became the 38th Jackrabbit to join the 1,000 point club with her 10th point of the game on Jan. 15 at Omaha. She currently has 1,160 career points, ranking 35th all-time in program history.

Just a month after Selland reached 1,000 career points, Tylee Irwin became the 39th player in program history to reach the 1,000 point milestone Feb. 20 after scoring a career-high 31 points at North Dakota State. Irwin currently sits at 1,049 career points, ranking tied for 38th in program history. Burckhard is the next closest Jackrabbit to 1,000 as she currently has 966 career points.

Scouting No. 8 Seed Syracuse
Syracuse enters Sunday's game 14-8 overall and finished 9-7 in the ACC. After winning its first four games of the season, Syracuse bounced back after its first loss against North Carolina with three consecutive wins before dropping back-to-back road contests against Louisville and Clemson. The Orange then won four of their next five games to regain momentum. Dropping two of its final three games, Syracuse entered the ACC Tournament as a No. 5 seed. Two thrilling wins against Boston College and Florida State advanced the Orange to the semifinals, where they fell to top-ranked Louisville.

Syracuse has four players averaging double figures and six players averaging at least seven points per game. Kiara Lewis leads the team, averaging 14.3 points per game.

As a team, the Orange are averaging 73 points per game and rank third in the ACC in 3-point field goals made with 159 in 22 games played. As the team's point guard, Tiana Mangakahia leads the nation in assists per game with 7.5. Defensively, Kamilla Cardoso is the ACC leader in blocks with 58 total while Mangakahia and Emily Engstler have combined for 59 steals.

Quentin Hillsman is in his 15th season leading Syracuse. Under Hillsman, the Orange have qualified for the last eight NCAA Tournaments. Syracuse has reached the postseason in 13 of Hillsman's 14 years, including four WNIT appearances and nine NCAA Tournament trips. Hillsman and the Orange made it to the NCAA Tournament Final in 2016 where they fell to Connecticut.

Jackrabbits' Last Time Out
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. - Top-seeded South Dakota State women's basketball fell to No. 8 seed Omaha 52-40 in The Summit League Tournament quarterfinals Saturday afternoon at the Sanford Pentagon.
The Jackrabbits saw their 18-game win streak end and suffered their first loss against a conference opponent this season. State shot 39.1 percent from the field, made just two 3-pointers and was outscored 26-12 in the paint. Despite the offensive struggles, SDSU outrebounded Omaha 42-35.

Individually, Tylee Irwin and Paiton Burckhard each scored 10 points and combined for 15 rebounds. Burckhard also added two assists and two steals. Madysen Vlastuin hit the only Jackrabbit 3-pointers of the game, totaling for six points along with four rebounds. Lindsey Theuninck finished with four points and six rebounds. Haley Greer scored five points, recorded three rebounds and two assists. Tori Nelson grabbed four rebounds.

Two Burckhard 3-pointers opened the scoring for the Jacks, giving State a 6-2 lead at the 7:45 mark in the first. Six unanswered points by the Mavericks gave Omaha its first lead of the game at 11-8 with 1:49 remaining in the quarter. Irwin's layup to beat the first quarter buzzer put the Jacks up 11-10.

Omaha made its first three field goals of the second half to take a 16-13 lead. Consecutive 3-pointers by Irwin and Greer gave the Jacks a 19-16 advantage, forcing a Maverick timeout at 7:37. After a Vlastuin 3-pointer, Omaha outscored SDSU 9-2 in the final 3:39 to take a 29-24 lead at halftime.

The Mavericks stretched their lead to double figures for the first time in the game with a 3-pointer and two free throws. Theisen's layup cut the SDSU deficit to 34-26, but the Jacks would go without a field goal for the next four minutes. Vlastuin broke the drought, hitting a 3-pointer at the 3:21 mark to make it 40-31 and two Theuninck free throws brought the Jacks within 40-33 at the end of the third.

The shooting struggles continued for the Jacks in the fourth as Irwin's jumper with 7:18 to play was the only points scored by the Jacks in the quarter until Theuninck's layup at the 2:34 mark cut Omaha's lead to 47-37. Burckhard's jumper made it a nine point game (48-39) with just over two minutes to play, but four Omaha free throws in the final 1:11 iced the game.

"I think the Mavericks are a really good team. I've said that throughout the year. They just have not been healthy," head coach Aaron Johnston said. "They haven't had that lineup together I'm sure as much as they would hope. When you see that lineup out there, that's a pretty good team and their size, I thought, really caused us a lot of problems in and around the basket. We probably didn't make enough jumpshots to really get ourselves going and then we started pressing a little bit and created some turnovers that aren't necessarily characteristic either, so I just thought they played really well. We didn't respond to what they were doing in a way that was effective, but a good win for them and it's something we'll have to move forward from because it's a disappointing loss for us."

A Win Would...
·       Improve South Dakota State to 5-9 in the NCAA Tournament in the Division I era
·       Advance the Jackrabbits to the Round of 32 where they would play the winner of No. 1 seed UCONN and 16th seeded High Point.
·       Improve SDSU to 2-0 all-time against Syracuse

A Loss Would...
·       Drop the Jacks to 4-10 in the NCAA Tournament in the Division I era

In the Polls
South Dakota State has been at least receiving votes in both the AP Top 25 Poll and the USA TODAY/Coaches Poll all season.

On Dec. 7 after beating then 15th-ranked Iowa State and then-No. 18 Gonzaga, the Jackrabbits entered the AP Poll for the first time in 11 years at No. 22. Additionally, State was tabbed No. 21 in the Coaches Poll that week. The squad dropped out of the polls but continued to receive votes for five consecutive weeks. State reentered the AP Top 25 at No. 25 on Jan. 25. In the most recent poll, the Jacks are ranked 25th.

The Jackrabbits ranked No. 25 in the Coaches Poll on Dec. 22 and 29. They are currently ranked 25th and receiving 74 points in the most recent poll.

Jackrabbits Earn Postseason Honors
SIOUX FALLS – South Dakota State's Myah Selland, Tylee Irwin, and Paiton Burckhard earned All-Summit League honors for the 2020-21 season, the league office announced Thursday.

Selland earned Summit League Player of the Year and All-Summit League First Team recognition. Irwin and Burckhard also earned a place on the All-Summit League First Team. For the fifth time in his career, head coach Aaron Johnston was named Summit League Coach of the Year.

Selland paces the Jackrabbits and the Summit League with 19.2 points per game, including 19.5 points per game in Summit League play. She has scored 15-plus points in 19 games this season, including 20-plus points on six occasions, and registered five double-doubles. She shoots 51.5 percent from the field and 32.8 percent from beyond the arc. Selland reached 1,000 career points on Jan. 15 at Omaha and now ranks 31st on SDSU's all-time scoring list with 1,160 points. She was named Summit League Player of the Week six time this season which is a program record for the Jackrabbits and ties for second all-time in Summit League women's basketball for weekly honors in a single season. Additionally, she was named Summit League Female Athlete of the Month for both December and January.

The Letcher native has been named a Becky Hammon Mid-Major Player of the Year Semifinalist. This is Selland's first time earning first team honors. She was named honorable mention as a sophomore and named to the All-Newcomer Team as a freshman.

Selland is the third Jackrabbit to be named Player of the Year (Jennifer Warkenthien – 2009, Macy Miller – 2018, 2019).

Irwin is averaging 15 points and 4.4 points per game in Summit League action. She leads the squad with 17 blocks and adds 22 steals and 1.4 assists per game on the season. The senior has scored in double figures in 15 games, including 11 Summit League contests. Irwin ranks 15th in the nation with an 80.6 free throw percentage. She was named Summit League Player of the Week after recording back-to-back career highs of 25 and 31 points at North Dakota State. She also joined the 1,000-point club in the same weekend and now ranks 38th for SDSU all-time with 1,039 career points. This is Irwin's first time earning All-Summit League honors.

Burckhard, who earned first team honors for the second straight season, averages 13 points and 5.5 rebounds per game. She is shooting 51.1 percent from the field, while adding 27 steals and 39 assists. The junior has scored in double figures on 14 occasions, including nine Summit League contests, and recorded two double-doubles. Burckhard scored a season-high 24 points in the regular season finale against Kansas City. Ranks sixth in the Summit League with 42 offensive rebounds and 10th in steals (27).

After being picked second in the league's preseason poll, Johnston's Jackrabbits claimed its seventh Summit League regular season title. SDSU went undefeated in Summit League play for the first time in program history and also were undefeated at home for the first time since the 2013-14 season. State holds an 18-game winning streak, which is the fourth longest in the nation. Johnston has led the Jacks to 15 20-plus win seasons in the Division I era, including the last 10 consecutive seasons. The head coach recorded his 500th career win this season and ranks 33rd among all active Division I coaches with 513 wins.

-GoJacks.com-