JACKRABBITS UNABLE TO OVERCOME BISON

Wednesday, February 18

Brookings, S.D.

7 p.m.

South Dakota State University

12-16,5-8Summit League

North Dakota State

22-6,12-1Summit League

North Dakota St.

South Dakota St.

Damon Wilkinson

Photo by: Jenna Batka

2/18/2026 10:18:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score

By: Andrew Pedersen

BROOKINGS, S.D. – South Dakota State and North Dakota State were within one possession with less than 10 minutes remaining of their Summit League men's basketball contest on Wednesday, Feb. 18, before the Bison pulled away from the Jackrabbits for a 74-66 road victory in First Bank & Trust Arena.

The two foes were neck-and-neck throughout the opening half. The score was tied at 25-all with 7 minutes, 38 seconds remaining when South Dakota State went on its best run of the night. Matthew Mors and Damon Wilkinson combined for seven consecutive points to put the Jackrabbits in front 32-25.

SDSU held that lead as the clock dipped under five minutes which is when NDSU followed with its largest scoring run of the game. The Bison's Noah Feddersen went on a personal 10-point scoring run to push North Dakota State back on top. Wilkinson ended the NDSU scoring stretch with a layup, however Damari Wheeler-Thomas made a layup of his own for the final field goal of the half to put the Bison ahead 37-34.

The Jackrabbits continued to stick with the Bison throughout the second half. SDSU cut the deficit down to one on three occasions. A Wilkinson hook shot put the Jackrabbits down 52-51 with 9:27 to play. SDSU forced a missed shot on NDSU's next possession, giving the Jacks an opportunity to take the lead. A 3-point attempt was unable to fall and the Bison then responded with six straight points.

The final seven minutes of action saw moments of a potential rally by the Jackrabbits, but the Bison kept the game outside of a possession the rest of the way. NDSU closed the matchup out by going 13-for-20 at the charity stripe over the the final 20 minutes.

Both teams finished shooting under 50% while making 25 field goals apiece. SDSU narrowly outshot NDSU from 3-point range with both under 31%, however the Bison's 12 extra free throw attempts overall made the difference. SDSU ended the game 8 of 14 at the stripe.

North Dakota State improved to 22-6 overall and 12-1 in Summit League play. South Dakota State fell to 12-16 (5-8)

NOTES

The Bison were paced in scoring by Wheeler-Thomas (23) and Feddersen (19). Trevian Carson had a game-high 12 rebounds for NDSU.
South Dakota State outrebounded NDSU by a 35-33 margin. The Jackrabbits were led in scoring by Wilkinson (18) and Matthew Mors (18). Wilkinson had a team-high eight rebounds while Kalen Garry dished out a game-high six assists.

UP NEXT
South Dakota State hosts its final home game of the 2026 on Saturday. The Jackrabbits will take on North Dakota inside First Bank & Trust Arena at 2 p.m. Senior Day recognition will occur prior to tipoff.

-GoJacks.com-