Get our free mobile app

With just three conference games under their belts, South Dakota and South Dakota State basketball is back in action tonight in both Vermillion and Brookings.

South Dakota State vs Omaha

SDSU (9-9) tips tonight at 7:00 PM from Frost Arena against the Omaha Mavericks (10-9).

Facebook

The Jackrabbits are coming off a split of their matchups on their recent road trip. SDSU earned a one-point victory, 81-80, over St. Thomas in St. Paul on Thursday behind a game-winning field goal with six seconds left by Zeke Mayo. The Jacks then traveled to Denver and lost a 99-80 contest to the Pioneers on Saturday.

Along with Kyle III who has improved his scoring average to 13.4 points per game, joining him in double digit scoring are Zeke Mayo (18.3), Luke Appel (10.9) and Charlie Easley (10.4). Mayo ranks among the top seven players in the league in points, rebounds, assists and steals. Easley paces the conference in steals per contest.

Omaha has won four of its last five games. Frankie Fidler, the reigning Summit League Performer of the Week, is averaging 18.7 points, while he ranks fourth in the nation in free throws made (126).

In Omaha

Playing to a mirrored schedule, the Lady Jackrabbits travels to Omaha Thursday to take on the Mavericks at Baxter Arena while riding a 5-game win streak.

The Jackrabbits are 52-31 all-time against the Mavericks, a series that dates back to the 1976-77 season. SDSU has won each of the last five meetings and 13 of the last 15. Most recently, SDSU beat Omaha in the 2023 Summit League Championship game, 93-51.

Omaha is 4-13 on the season and 0-4 in Summit League games. The Mavericks are 3-5 on their home floor and have lost seven straight games. Their last win was December 18 over Texas Southern.

South Dakota State is 11-5 on the year and 3-0 in Summit League action. The Jacks have won five straight contests. The team is 4-4 on the road this year.

South Dakota vs St. Thomas

At the Sanford Coyote Sports Center in Vermillion, USD and St. Thomas tip-off at 7:00 PM.

Thursday's matchup marks the fifth meeting between South Dakota and St. Thomas. The Coyotes own a 4-0 record against the Tommies since St. Thomas transitioned to Division I and joined the Summit League two years ago.

South Dakota is looking to snap a four-game skid that started with a 67-51 home loss to Omaha on Dec. 31. The Coyotes' lone league win of the season came at NDSU on Dec. 29 behind 33 points from junior transfer Kaleb Stewart.

On The Road

The Lady Coyotes are on the road this week. First up is a game at St. Thomas (11-7, 3-1) Thursday inside Schoenecker Arena in St. Paul, Minnesota. Then the Coyotes will travel to South Dakota State (11-5, 3-0) for a game at 6 p.m. Saturday inside Frost Arena in Brookings, South Dakota.

South Dakota (12-6, 1-2 Summit) comes off its bye weekend with a tough road trip that starts at a St. Thomas squad that defeated Oral Roberts two days after the Coyotes' loss to the Golden Eagles.

Junior guard Grace Larkins is coming off a 20 point, 10 assist, eight rebound effort against ORU. Her 10 assists were a career high and marked the first time in exactly four years to the day that a Coyote had recorded 10 assists in a game.

30 famous people you might not know were college athletes

Stacker dug deep to find 30 celebrities who were previously college athletes. There are musicians, politicians, actors, writers, and reality TV stars. For some, an athletic career was a real, promising possibility that ultimately faded away due to injury or an alternate calling. Others scrapped their way onto a team and simply played for fun and the love of the sport. Read on to find out if your favorite actor, singer, or politician once sported a university jersey.

Gallery Credit: Sophia Crisafulli