BROOKINGS In college basketball you want to be playing your best come March. For the South Dakota State men, they seem to be doing that.
The Jackrabbits head into this weekends Summit League Tournament in Sioux Falls riding a five-game win streak and won the conference regular season title outright.
We feel like were playing our best basketball for sure, said junior guard Zeke Mayo. We obviously had our struggles earlier in the year, but we turned it on at the right time and finished really strong and won the regular season. Hopefully that gives us some momentum heading down to Sioux Falls.
Nothing pointed more to the Jacks having momentum than last weekend when SDSU went to North Dakota and North Dakota State and came away with victories. SDSU and UND were tied 53-53 with 10 minutes to play and the Jacks outscored the Fighting Hawks 19-9 the rest of the way. The Jacks then led the Bison 50-27 at halftime in Fargo and cruised to a 78-61 victory in the last game of the regular season.
SDSUs offense has been putting up solid numbers all conference season as the Jacks are second in the conference in scoring, averaging 78.9 points per game against Summit League opponents. But the Jacks offense has been more efficient over the past four games. Theyve shot 55.4% from the field and 42.1% from three and are averaging 12.3 assists per game.
I think were sharing the ball really well, Mayo said. I think were sharing the ball and getting some defensive stops. I think our best offense is at a high pace and in transition. So when we can get stops and come down with rebounds, it allows us to play faster and just create fluid offense within ourselves and take open shots and play from inside-out.
Fifth-year senior Charlie Easley echoed Mayos statement, saying SDSU has focused on getting stops on the defensive end.
Every possession has to mean something. You cant take any off. And when you do get a bunch of stops and make the other team take tough shots consistently, that helps you go on runs and helps you get clicking offensively. You have to get rebounds and get out and go. [Getting stops and rebounds] also gets the energy up for the whole game, Easley said.
Mayo has been a big catalyst during SDSUs five-game win streak. The Summit League Player of the Year candidate averaged 22 points, 5.4 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.3 steals in the month of February. Hes also been getting to the free throw line more frequently during the five-game win streak, making 23 of his 27 free throws during that five-game span.
SDSU head coach Eric Henderson said he thinks Mayo has been letting the game come to him as of late.
I feel like things have slowed down for [Mayo] a little bit and when they do, your efficiency really rises. I think there were times where he was trying to do too much and I think hes trusted his teammates more and more. The maturity hes shown is incredible and I love how efficiently and calm hes playing. There certainly has to be a competitive spirit that is elite and you have to have regardless, but I think the game has slowed down for him, Henderson said.
SDSU wont know its first round opponent in the Summit League Tournament until Friday night when No. 8 seeded Oral Roberts takes on No. 9 South Dakota. This will be the seventh time that the Jacks have been the No. 1 seed in the Summit League Tournament. SDSU holds a 12-3 record as the No. 1 seed and has won the tournament three times as the top-seeded team.
The Jacks have lost twice as a top-two seed in the first round and it came in back-to-back tournaments in 2019 and 2020.
Henderson was an assistant coach in 2019 and the head coach of the 2020 team. There has been a narrative that the Jacks have felt pressure as the No. 1 seed and having the big backing that they get at the Denny Sanford PREMIER Center and that has led to early exits in Sioux Falls.
Henderson said heading into this years tournament SDSU hopes to feed off the energy from the crowd.
Lets not look at [the environment] as added pressure. Lets look at it as, lets make sure thats on our team. Lets not butt heads with it, lets embrace it. We have an incredible opportunity, like every team does, and to have the support that we get down there in Sioux Falls, were incredibly lucky and feel fortunate to have that support. Lets embrace it, lets enjoy the moment and compete our tails off, Henderson said.
SDSUs first game will be on Saturday at 6 p.m. and you can watch the game on Midco Sports or the Summit League Network. If the Jacks win theyll take on No. 4 St. Thomas or No. 5 North Dakota State on Monday at 6 p.m. The Jacks wont be looking ahead that far though because they know if they lose, their season is over.
This is what you play for, Easley said. It comes down to these moments and this tournament and its a whole years worth of preparation and you just kind of have to go and do your best. You have to stay connected as a team throughout the whole game. Its not going to always be perfect, but you have to stay positive and connected and do the little things it takes to win games, Easley said.
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