SIOUX FALLS — After finishing a combined 35-1 in conference play, South Dakota State University’s basketball teams will hold the No. 1 seed in both Summit League tournaments when they get underway starting Saturday, March 5 in Sioux Falls.
The drama was in the women’s bracket, with SDSU sliding into the top spot based on a tiebreaker with South Dakota with both teams finishing 17-1 in conference play and each team’s only league loss coming to each other. The tiebreaker came down to the team’s final ranking in the NCAA NET ranking where SDSU ranked No. 34 and the Coyotes were No. 36. SDSU will open the tournament against eighth-seeded Denver in the opening game at 12:30 p.m. on Saturday, March 5.
The women’s bracket was announced Tuesday morning after waiting for South Dakota and Western Illinois to finish the regular season after a postponed game. Those two teams will now meet again on Saturday in the quarterfinal round, with USD seeking its third straight Summit League tournament title. That game is scheduled for 3 p.m.
Sunday’s women’s quarterfinal games include No. 4 Oral Roberts against No. 5 North Dakota and No. 3 Kansas City against No. 6 North Dakota State.
In the men’s bracket, SDSU has the No. 1 seed off the strength of an 18-0 conference record, becoming the first Summit League team all-time to go undefeated in conference play. For a second straight season, SDSU will take on Omaha in the opening round in a 6 p.m. game on Saturday. Second-seeded North Dakota State will follow with a game against No. 7 Denver at 8:30 p.m.
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South Dakota has the No. 5 seed in the men’s bracket and will take on fourth-seeded Kansas City at 6 p.m. Sunday. Oral Roberts, last season’s NCAA tournament Cinderella, is the No. 3 seed and its meeting with No. 6 Western Illinois is the other quarterfinal game at 8:30 p.m. on Sunday. A potential SDSU-USD semifinal game looms at 6 p.m. on Monday, while the other semifinal will be held at 8:30 p.m. Monday, with the championship game planned for 8 p.m. Tuesday.
The tournament returns to the Premier Center in 2022 after being held at the smaller Sanford Pentagon in 2021 due to COVID-19 restrictions, where the games were closed to the general public.
The first three days of the tournament will be televised on Midco Sports Network. The women’s championship is scheduled for 1 p.m. Tuesday, March 8 and will be televised on ESPNU. The men’s championship game will be played at 8 p.m. on March 8 and will be televised on ESPN2.
Summit League women’s basketball tournament
March 5-8 -- Premier Center, Sioux Falls
Quarterfinals
Saturday, March 5
No. 1 South Dakota State (21-8, 17-1 Summit) vs. No. 8 Denver (10-19, 5-13), 12:30 p.m.
No. 2 South Dakota (24-5, 17-1 Summit) vs. No. 7 Western Illinois (14-14, 5-12), 3 p.m.
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Sunday, March 6
No. 4 Oral Roberts (15-14, 10-8) vs. No. 5 North Dakota (15-14, 9-9), 12:30 p.m.
No. 3 Kansas City (22-7, 12-6) vs. No. 6 North Dakota State (11-17, 7-11), 3 p.m.
Semifinals -- Monday, March 7
SDSU/Denver winner vs. ORU/UND winner, 12:30 p.m.
USD/WIU winner vs. KC/NDSU winner, 3 p.m.
Championship -- Tuesday, March 8
Semifinal winners, 1 p.m.
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Summit League men’s basketball tournament
March 5-8 -- Premier Center, Sioux Falls
Quarterfinals
Saturday, March 5
No. 1 South Dakota State (27-4, 18-0 SL) vs. No. 8 Omaha (5-24, 4-14), 6 p.m.
No. 2 North Dakota State (21-9, 13-5) vs. No. 7 Denver (11-20, 7-11), 8:30 p.m.
Sunday, March 6
No. 4 Kansas City (19-11, 12-6) vs. No. 5 South Dakota (18-11, 11-7), 6 p.m.
No. 3 Oral Roberts (18-11, 12-6) vs. No. 6 Western Illinois (16-14, 7-11), 8:30 p.m.
Semifinals -- Monday, March 7
SDSU/Omaha winner vs. KC/USD winner, 6 p.m.
NDSU/Denver winner vs. ORU/WIU winner, 8:30 p.m.
Championship -- Tuesday, March 8
Semifinal winners, 8 p.m.
