SIOUX FALLS Omaha hung around with the South Dakota State women for the first quarter and a half on Thursday afternoon, but the No. 25 ranked Jackrabbits used a strong end to the first half to build a lead and came away with an 87-67 victory in their opening game of the Summit League Tournament.
We just talked about trying to come out here and play in a way that has been similar all year, said SDSU head coach Aaron Johnston. There wasnt really a change or an adjustment. We were just trying to do things at a little higher level and I thought we did a good job of that. I just thought everyone was locked in and played really well.
Top-seeded SDSU led 8-2 three and half minutes into the game but the Mavericks then scored six straight to tie things up with 5:25 to go in the opening quarter. The Jacks then outscored Omaha 11-6 in the final 4:13 to take a 21-16 lead into the second.
Omaha cut the lead to 23-20 a minute and a half into the second quarter but then the Jacks turned it on. SDSU proceeded to go on a 16-4 run in the final eight and half minutes of the half and led 39-24 at halftime.
Omaha shot 20% from the field in the second quarter and Johnston said the way his team defended allowed them to pull away in the second frame.
I think we defended at a really high level in that second quarter. I think for us we did a really good job in that quarter of helping and taking away some easy driving lanes more, Johnston said.
The Jacks kept the Mavericks at bay in the third quarter as their lead ranged from 12-16 points. SDSU led 61-47 at the end of the third and then completely pulled away in the fourth. The Jacks stretched the lead to 67-49 with four-straight free throws and then back-to-back 3-pointers from Madysen Vlastuin made it 73-52 with seven minutes to go.
Vlastuin went 4-of-5 from three on the day and finished with a season-high 12 points off of the bench. She wasnt the only player that scored off of the bench as Kallie Theisen had eight points and Emilee Fox had seven points.
SDSU leading-scorer Brooklyn Meyer said it makes a difference when the Jacks can have that kind of bench scoring.
Its great to have those energy plays off the bench. They played great today and it was just fun to get everyone going, Brooklyn Meyer said.
The Jacks largest lead of the game came with 5:34 left in the fourth as they led 79-55. It was the second-straight season that the Mavericks put up a fight in the first round of the Summit League Tournament against the Jacks and Omaha is one of three teams to beat SDSU in the conference tournament over the past 16 seasons.
Johnston said that the experience that his team has in this tournament allowed them to hold the Mavericks off on Thursday.
I think experience matters. I think you have to play well, that matters more than experience, but experience gets you through the emotions that go into a game. There are times where you’re playing well and emotions get high. There were stretches in this game where Omaha was playing with us and making plays and we didnt get rattled. [We just have] a really solid group with experience and it allows them to play through the ups and downs relative to the game, Johnston said.
SDSU shot 58.3% from the field and was 7-of-18 from beyond the arc. The Jacks had four other players besides Vlastuin score in double figures. Brooklyn Meyer led the way with 16 points and six assists. Paige Meyer had 12 points and Haleigh Timmer and Madison Mathiowetz each had 11 points.
Johnston said balanced scoring is important and its how the Jacks have always played since hes led SDSU.
I think [balanced scoring] makes it hard to key in on certain people. Brooklyn was 8-of-11, she had 16 points. [You might think] ah, thats an average game, but she had six assists. She was a focal point of what Omaha did [defensively]. If we just rely on Brooklyn constantly, you can take one player away, but the threat that [Mathiowetz] is going to hit a three or Paige or [Timmer and Vlastuin], it just changes things. It just opens shots for different people. Weve always been that kind of team. We play to the strengths on the floor and dont try to do too much on our own. It really makes us a difficult team to defend, Johnston said.
The Mavericks shot 38.5% from the field and were 5-of-19 from three. Omaha was led by Grace Cave who had 20 points. Ja Harvey chipped in 17 points for the Mavericks.
With the win, SDSU advances to the semifinals of the conference tournament for the 16th time in the past 17 seasons. The Jacks will take on the winner of No. 4 seeded St. Thomas and No. 5 seeded North Dakota at approximately 2:15 p.m. Saturday. The Tommies and Fighting Hawks will play on Friday at noon.
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