South Dakota State led from start to finish as the Jackrabbits defeated Omaha 91-70 in Summit League men’s basketball Saturday in Baxter Arena.
After both sides traded baskets in the opening minute, Matt Dentlinger banked in a layup with 18 minutes, 36 seconds remaining in the first half. That began a 10-point scoring run for SDSU that put the Jacks up 12-2 not even five minutes into the contest. Omaha kept the game near single digits until a Zeke Mayo 3-pointer at the 12:09 mark of the opening half put the margin into double digits for good.
The Jackrabbits led by 17 three separate times in the first half before they eventually went to the halftime break up 46-33.
South Dakota State shot 57.6% (19-33) in the first half and nearly matched the mark in the second half. SDSU ended the contest by going 34-for-63 (54%) from the floor, including a 9 of 18 effort from 3-point range, as the Jacks cruised in the second half. The Jackrabbits led by as many as 25 before closing out the 21-point victory.
Dentlinger paced five double-digit scorers for South Dakota State by matching his career high with 26 points. Zeke Mayo recorded 18 points and grabbed nine rebounds. Charlie Easley went 5 of 6 from the floor and scored 14 points. William Kyle III earned his first career double-double by notching 11 points and 11 rebounds. Matthew Mors scored 10 points and had a team-high two steals. Matt Mims played a team-high 38 minutes and registered eight points.
The Jackrabbits improved to 17-11 overall and 12-4 in Summit League play. The Mavericks fell to 8-21 overall and 4-13 in league play.
Notes
• South Dakota State closed out its road schedule as part of its regular season with a 6-9 record. The Jacks claimed their seventh straight win over the Mavs.
• The Jackrabbits locked up the No. 2 seed at The Summit League tournament which is held in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, at the Denny Sanford PREMIER Center. SDSU will play in the 8:30 p.m. game on Saturday, March 4, against an opponent to be determined.
Up Next
The Jackrabbits close out their regular season with two games in Frost Arena. SDSU will host Kansas City next on Thursday, Feb. 23, at 7 p.m.
