Upcoming Event: Men's Basketball versus Denver on January 8, 2026 at 7 p.m.
/
7 p.m.
Men's Basketball
vs Denver
South Dakota State University Athletics
Thursday, January 8
Brookings, S.D.
7 p.m.
South Dakota State University
vs
Denver
Photo by: Evan Patzwald
SDSU HOSTS DENVER THURSDAY
1/7/2026 9:58:00 AM | Men's Basketball
| Game 18: South Dakota State (8-9, 1-1) vs. Denver (8-9, 1-1) | |
| Date and Time | Thursday, Jan. 8 - 7 p.m. CT |
| Location | Brookings, S.D. |
| Site | First Bank & Trust Arena |
| Television/Stream | Midco Sports Two / Summit League Network |
| Audio | GoJacks.com |
| Live Stats | GoJacksLive.com |
| Tickets | JackrabbitTickets.com |
| South Dakota State | Game Notes | Home Page |
| Denver | Home Page |
South Dakota State hosts Denver on Thursday at 7 p.m. inside First Bank & Trust Arena. Both teams come off close Summit League losses and are 1-1 in conference action.
SDSU played in its first overtime in two seasons on Saturday, but fell in a 90-87 defeat at North Dakota. The Jackrabbits and Fighting Hawks' matchup featured 11 tie scores and 11 lead changes. The Jacks had an 87-85 edge before a Hawks 3-pointer with 17 seconds left in the OT period ultimately made the difference.
The Jackrabbits had two 20-point scorers in the contest in Grand Forks. Joe Sayler recorded his second 20-point performance of the season by registering a career-high 27 points. Jaden Jackson recorded his fifth 20-point effort of the year by scoring 22 points. Both played career highs of 40 and 44 minutes respectively. They also combined to shoot 17-for-33 from the field while both went 5 of 9 from long range.
Following a 24-point, 19-rebound effort on Thursday, Damon Wilkinson had another strong appearance on Saturday. He scored 11 points and grabbed eight rebounds for the Jackrabbits. He's now scored double digits in nine straight games and improved his team-leading rebounding mark to 6.9 boards per contest.
Denver fell 92-88 at St. Thomas on Sunday. The Pioneers held a four-point lead as the clock dipped under nine minutes in the second half in St. Paul, however a 12-2 run for the Tommies put the home side ahead for good.
Both SDSU and Denver enter Thursday's meeting at 8-9 overall and 1-1 in Summit League play. The two foes also are led by first-year head coaches.
The Pioneers are led by coach Tim Bergstraser. Denver has four players that average in double digits scoring in Carson Johnson (17.6), Jeremiah Burke (15.8), Zane Nelson (13.1) and Logan Kindsey (11.9). They pace the conference in scoring as a team at 84.5 points per game.
SDSU is 24-8 all-time against Denver. The Jacks have won 18 of the last 21 meetings. The two sides split their matchups a season ago. SDSU has won the last 10 meetings in Brookings.
PROMOTIONAL TICKET OFFER
For Educator Apprecation Night, South Dakota State Athletics would like to offer all educators in the Brookings School District two complimentary tickets to the SDSU Men's Basketball game on Thursday. To access the sale, visit GoJacks.com/PromoCode and use the offer code EDUTHANKYOU26. This sale is only available online, while supplies last. Free youth tickets for youth in the Brookings area, along with discounted adult tickets, are also available online only by visiting GoJacks.com/PromoCode and use the offer code BACKTOSCHOOL26.
COVERAGE INFORMATION
Thursday's game in First Bank & Trust Arena will be televised on Midco Sports Two. Every South Dakota State home game, excluding those broadcast on CBS Sports Network, streams on the Summit League Network powered by Midco Sports Plus. Live stats for the game are available on GoJacksLive.com. Every SDSU men's basketball game can be heard on the Jackrabbit Sports Network, at GoJacks.com.watch or on the Varsity App. To keep up with the Jackrabbits, follow along with the program on their social media accounts @GoJacksMBB or visit GoJacks.com.
-GoJacks.com-
Players Mentioned
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