BROOKINGS Back in early November before the season started not many people knew what to expect from the South Dakota State womens basketball team.
During the offseason SDSU saw two starters fall victim to season-ending injuries and SDSU was looking at a season in which the Jacks would have to rely on players who had yet to have large roles on the team.
Now, nearly four months later, the Jackrabbits have yet to lose a game in the Summit League and are a win away from clinching the outright regular season conference title. SDSU head coach Aaron Johnston said coming into the season his expectations did not change after the injuries to Haleigh Timmer and Kallie Theisen.
I dont think my expectations have ever changed, Johnston said. Im pretty stubborn, and I think our team is too. I dont think any adversity is going to change what were trying to accomplish for each other. So, the championship habits and championship daily process that we continue to go through didnt really change. Never did I think, jeez were just not going to be good enough this year or was I ready to accept a different standard.
At the same time, never did I think, lets win another championship to prove to everybody that were still good. I never thought about either side of that and I think our team continued to just look at it as, today, what do we have to do to make the most of where were at?
SDSU (22-5, 14-0) has won 16-straight games and has defeated teams by an average of 17.8 points per game in its 14 conference games. This weekend the Jacks will welcome the two North Dakota schools to Brookings. UND (9-18, 5-9) enters Thursdays game having lost two straight and the Jacks beat the Fighting Hawks 74-53 in the first conference game of the season.
NDSU has been the only conference opponent that had a chance to beat the Jacks. The Bison sit in second place in the Summit League with an overall record of 18-9 and a 12-2 record in the conference. NDSU and SDSU were tied with 1:40 to play in Fargo on Feb. 1 and the Jacks scored the final seven points of the game to come away with a 65-58 victory.
Johnston said him and his team are excited for the opportunities ahead of them this week.
Its going to be a fun week, Johnston said. Having both North Dakota on Thursday and North Dakota State will be a good test for all sides. Specifically North Dakota State, theyre playing great. I dont know if anyone in the league is playing as well as they have the last several games when you watch them play and look at their numbers. Theyre shooting unbelievably from the 3-point line. Theyre incredibly deep. They have a really good plan and defend really well.
Thats going to be a big game for both teams on Saturday. Thats going to be an important game. Were going to do everything we can to win on that day and play well on Senior Day for Tori [Nelson] and the last game at Frost [Arena] and to gain momentum before [the conference tournament].
SDSU is coming off of its largest conference win of the season as the Jacks beat St. Thomas 97-63 in St. Paul on Saturday. Junior point guard Paige Meyer was named Summit League Peak Performer of the Week after averaging 20 points, 5.5 assists and five rebounds in wins over the Tommies and Denver.
Meyer has seen a bit of an uptick in her numbers since the start of conference play as she is averaging 13.2 points and 4.5 assists against Summit League opponents. She missed three of the first four games of the season due to a foot injury and Johnston said it took her awhile to fully get back from that injury but shes been playing up to expectations over the past two months.
I think Paige has been fantastic, and shes had a tough year, Johnston said. As much as were seeing her play great now, she had to deal with an injury, recover from an injury, gain the confidence back and find her footing on the team. Theres been adversity in her year for sure. She is a captain for us this year and has taken on a more vocal role on the team.
This year so much of what we do falls on Paige and she has to carry a big load for our team. But shes done that as well as we ever could have hoped. I think the team feeds off of her confidence. When she goes out there and plays with that excitement, energy, poise and confidence, I think the rest of the team goes in her direction.
These are the final two games of the regular season for SDSU. The Jacks will travel to Sioux Falls March 9-12 for the Summit League Tournament and will look to punch their ticket to the NCAA Tournament for the fifth time in the past seven seasons and the 12th time overall.
Johnston said winning another regular season conference title this weekend would show that SDSUs success is a result of the hard work that the program puts in year in and year out.
As you continue to have success it just continues to validate that whatever youre doing is working. Whether itd be the people were bringing in and how we develop players and how we retain players or how they absorb information, process it and plan. It just continues to emphasize that were hopefully on the right track here. Im just really proud of how the team continues to play. This year, past years. I just really feel like everyone is in a good place, Johnston said.
Leave a Reply