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BROOKINGS — The South Dakota State men’s basketball team picked up its first Summit League win of the season Thursday night.
The Jacks downed Western Illinois 71-64, and despite holding a 10-point lead at halftime, the Jacks needed a 15-3 run at the end of the game to pick up the win.
SDSU’s lead ballooned to as large as 13 points in the second half before the Leathernecks began chipping away, eventually taking the lead with 8:42 remaining in regulation during a 12-0 run. After a few lead changes, Zeke Mayo scored SDSU’s final 15 points, leading the charge for the game-ending 15-3 run that gave SDSU a lead after it had been down by five.
Mayo picked up a career-high 33 points in the win, connecting on 11 of his 21 shot attempts, including four of nine tries from 3-point range and seven of his eight free throws.
Matthew Mors (12) and Matt Dentlinger (10) also scored in double figures for the Jacks. Detlinger also led the squad in rebounding with nine, as the Jackrabbits pulled down 36 as a team compared to Western Illinois’ 28.
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Elijah Farr put up a team-best 16 points off the bench for the Leathernecks, with Trenton Massner and Quinlan Bennett each picking up 15.
As a team, SDSU shot 49.1% from the field and 26.3% from behind the arc, while holding Western Illinois to 38.2% shooting and 28% from 3-point range.
SDSU (6-8, 1-1 Summit) will host St. Thomas at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 31, before it embarks on a three-game road trip.
