VOLGA – Sioux Valley’s Alec Squires committed to play basketball at South Dakota State on Thursday.
The 6-foot-10-inch center, who is the No. 3 ranked player in South Dakota in the Class of 2024, will be a junior this season for the Cossacks and said it did not take long for him to commit to the Jackrabbits after they offered him a scholarship.
“It was about two days after [SDSU] offered me that I decided to commit. [It felt] more like two hours though. I kind of had my eyes on them and was [waiting for that offer], and I was really surprised by it. I’ve always had a love for SDSU athletics and couldn’t really pass it down,” Squires said.
Squires had received a lot of offers from Division II schools, but North Dakota was the only other Division I school. He said it felt good make his decision and now know what his next step in basketball will be.
“It is a little weight off of my shoulders and will kind of keeps my mind a little clearer while I’m out on the basketball court. You don’t really have to think about it anymore when you go home at night,” Squires said.
Squires missed all of his freshman season due to injury. He then came back strong, averaging a double-double for the Cossacks with 10 points and 11 rebounds per game. Squires had 17 dunks last season, while shooting 68.8% from the field and helped lead Sioux Valley to its second-straight runner-up finish in the Class A State Tournament.
Squires plays AAU basketball in the offseason for the Pentagon Schoolers out of Sioux Falls. He said SDSU really started to take notice in his game this past summer and thinks that’s what led to the scholarship offer.
“I think [the way I played this summer in AAU] played a huge factor in [earning the offer from SDSU]. I was out my whole freshman year due to medical issues and this last summer definitely played a key factor because now they could really see what I had to offer,” Squires said.
Committing before his junior season gives Squires an advantage in the sense that now he knows what he needs to work on in the next two years before playing at the Division I level.
With his commitment behind him, Squires can now focus on finishing off his final two high school seasons and checking off a goal that has been on the Cossacks’ minds for the past three years. Sioux Valley’s goal the past three season’s has been to win a State Championship. The Cossacks have qualified for the State Tournament the past three years, but have been unable to get that final win and Squires said it would be special to bring a championship back to Volga.
“It would mean the world to all of us [to win a State Championship]. We want it so bad. We’re working day and night to be in the position that we’ve been the last two years and we want to get back and just improve as a team,” Squires said.
Even though it's two years away, the thought of playing in front of the crowd at what will be called First Bank & Trust Arena makes Squires very excited. He grew up watching the Jacks and can’t wait to play in Brookings.
“It will mean the world to me [to put on that Jackrabbit uniform and play in Brookings]. I remember going to watch the Jackrabbits play basketball and it really felt like they were celebrities out there and I’m really excited to be a part of that,” Squires said.
