Bison Lead the March to the Summit
The Men’s and Women’s Summit League Basketball Championships start in one week’s time on March 4. Both the men’s and women’s teams have two games left in the season to determine the final standings.
The Coyotes’ women’s team went 1-1 last week, defeating Omaha 69 to 66 on Feb. 19, then falling to North Dakota State 81 to 68 for Senior Day on Feb. 21.
The women sit at third in the standings, behind NDSU and SDSU, at 21-7 overall and 11-3 in conference.
The Bison are leading with an overall record of 25-2 and an undefeated 14-0 record in conference play, earning them seven votes in the AP poll. The Jackrabbits are 22-6 overall and 12-2 in conference with losses to NDSU and USD. South Dakota State plays at North Dakota State and at home against South Dakota in their final two games.
Oral Roberts and St. Thomas are tied at fourth with a record of 7-7. The two teams play at Oral Roberts on the final day of league play.
Denver and Kansas City are tied for sixth at 4-11; both teams play one road game in the final week of play. North Dakota is 8th at 3-11, and Omaha is 9th at 2-12.
The men went 0-2 last week with road losses to Denver by 20 and Oral Roberts by five. Voice of South Dakota Men’s Basketball, John Thayer, thinks USD staff has done an excellent job with the team despite the injuries throughout the season, “Injuries are the identity of this team, the staff has done an unbelievable job preparing these guys.”
The Bison control the men’s side as well, with a 23-6 overall record and a 13-1 conference record. St. Thomas sits second at 10-4, followed by North Dakota at 10-5. Omaha ranks 4th at 8-6, with Denver close behind at 8-7.
The Coyotes rank sixth at 6-8, tied with South Dakota State, with a matchup in the Sanford Coyote Sports Center on Sat., Feb. 28. Oral Roberts sits in 8th at 2-12, and Kansas City in ninth at 1-13.
Thayer believes the team can go far in the tournament because of a factor most people overlook.
“As battle-tested as anybody coming down to the wire in games… if they’re in a game close at the end in Sioux Falls, why bet against them?” Thayer said. “They’ve experienced it all and they’re prepared for it.”
Thayer points to freshman guard, Uzziah Buntyn, for stepping up big for USD, filling the starting point guard role.
“What an opportunity,” Thayer said. “When Joziah Dotzler went down with injury to start the season, it put a lot on Uzziah.”
The men play at home against Omaha and South Dakota State, and the women travel to North Dakota and South Dakota State. All games will be streamed on the Summit League Network. The championship game and semifinals of the men’s bracket will be on CBS Sports Network, as well as the women’s championship game.
