SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – Nine out of 10 Summit League men's basketball teams will be in action Tuesday when the 2021-22 college hoops season officially begins. South Dakota, the only one not playing on Tuesday, will play in a special Veterans Day matchup against Air Force at the Sanford Pentagon in a game being televised by Midco Sports.
Five of the nine will open the new campaign on their home courts with the other four opening on the road, including Kansas City (at Minnesota) and Western Illinois (at Nebraska), who open at Big Ten opponents.
Preseason favorite South Dakota State is the only league squad with a ranked-opponent on the docket during the opening week as the Jackrabbits travel to No. 14/13 Alabama after opening at home with Missouri Valley-foe Bradley on Tuesday.
Preseason Player of the Year Max Abmas and Oral Roberts begin their season at Colorado State in a matchup that will air on Stadium 24/7.
St. Thomas will makes its Division I debut in a road tilt at Chicago State.
Upcoming In The Summit League (TV/Streaming) | Tip (CT)
Tuesday, November 9 (Stream/TV)
Concordia-Moorhead at NDSU (WDAY Xtra/ESPN3) | 7 p.m.
St. Thomas at Chicago State | 7 p.m.
Milwaukee at North Dakota (Bally Sports North) | 7 p.m.
Kansas City at Minnesota (B1G+) | 7 p.m.
Western Illinois at Nebraska (B1G+) | 7 p.m.
Hastings College at Omaha (Omaha) | 7 p.m.
Regis at Denver (DU) | 7 p.m.
ORU at Colorado State (Stadium) | 7:30 p.m.
Bradley at SDSU (Midco Sports/Midco Sports Plus) | 8:15 p.m.
Thursday, November 11
Air Force vs. South Dakota (Midco Sports/Midco Sports Plus) 1:30 p.m.
Friday, November 12
NDSU at Cal Poly (ESPN+) | 2 p.m.
Culver-Stockton at Western Illinois (WIU) | 6 p.m.
SW Christian at Oral Roberts (ORUSN) | 7 p.m.
Kansas City at Iowa (B1G+) | 7 p.m.
Ottawa (Ariz.) at Denver (DU) | 7 p.m.
South Dakota State at Alabama (SEC+) | 7 p.m.
Saturday, November 13
Omaha at Ball State (BSU) | 12 p.m.
St. Thomas at St. Francis (N.Y.) (NEC) | 2 p.m.
Sunday, November 14
South Dakota at Drake (ESPN+) | 2 p.m.
SDSU at Stephen F. Austin (ESPN+) | 2 p.m.
all times local to site
2020-21 PRESEASON ALL-LEAGUE AWARDS
Preseason Player of the Year
Max Abmas, Oral Roberts
Preseason All-Summit League First Team
Max Abmas, Oral Roberts, Jr., G
(24.5 ppg/3.2 rpg/3.9 apg)*
Josiah Allick, Kansas City, Jr., F
(15.0 ppg/6.0 rpg/0.3 bpg)
Sam Griesel, North Dakota State, Sr., G
(11.5 ppg/6.4 rpg/3.0 apg)
Rocky Kreuser, North Dakota State, Gr., F
(15.7 ppg/7.0 rpg/0.7 bpg)
Baylor Scheierman, South Dakota State, Jr., G
(15.4 ppg/9.2 rpg/4.0 apg)
Douglas Wilson, South Dakota State, Gr., F
(16.8 ppg/5.4 rpg/0.6 bpg)
Preseason All-Summit League Second Team
Will Carius, Western Illinois, Gr., F
(14.4 ppg/5.2 rpg/0.6 bpg)
Tyree Eady, North Dakota State, Sr., G
(11.5 ppg/5.7 rpg/0.6 spg)
Noah Freidel, South Dakota State, Jr., G
(16.0 ppg/4.2 rpg/0.9 spg)
Xavier Fuller, South Dakota, Sr., F
(8.9 ppg/4.9 rpg/0.9 apg)
Tasos Kamateros, South Dakota, Jr., F
(8.4 ppg/4.4 rpg/0.3 bpg)
PRESEASON ALL-LEAGUE NOTEABLES
• ORU's Max Abmas was named the Preseason Player of the Year after leading the nation in scoring at 24.5 ppg, including a 27.2 ppg average in 15 Summit League contests. He led the 15th-seeded Golden Eagles to a Sweet 16 appearance following a run to the Summit League Championship as the No. 4 seed where he earned Championship MVP honors.
• SDSU's Douglas Wilson was a second-team selection during his second season in Brookings where he averaged 16.8 ppg and 4.9 rpg in league action. He was the 2020 Summit League Player of the Year.
• SDSU's Baylor Scheierman led all league players with 4.7 apg in league action, ranked second in rebounding at 9.4 rpg to go with a 15.1 ppg average. He's the top returning rebounder in the league and shot 43.8 percent from 3-point range.
• NDSU's Rocky Kreuser ranked 10th in league action in scoring (15.8 ppg) and fifth in rebounding (7.4 rpg). He led the Bison in both categories.
• NDSU's Sam Griesel averaged 12.3 ppg, 6.3 rpg and 2.6 apg in 16 starts for the Bison in league play.
• KC's Josiah Allick shot 54.9 percent from the field in league play, which is tops among all returners. He averaged 14.4 ppg and 5.3 rpg for the Roos in league action.
• USD's Xavier Fuller and Tasos Kamateros both started all 25 games for the Coyotes, who finished second in league play a year ago. Fuller averaged 8.9 ppg, while Kamateros chipped in 8.4 ppg.
• Tyree Eady was one of three Bison to average in double figures, scoring at a 10.9 ppg clip in league play and 11.5 ppg overall.
Freidel averaged 16.0 ppg in 14 contests, which included 12 starts. He shot 38.3 percent from 3-point range.
• Will Carius averaged 2.5 makes per game from 3-point range and led the Leathernecks in scoring (14.4 ppg) during his first season with the program. He upped that average to 16.4 ppg in 14 league contests.
MAXIMIZING THE BUZZ
The buzz Oral Roberts' junior Max Abmas created in March during his squad's run to the Sweet 16 is carrying over to November as he the Rockwall, Texas native has been named a presason All-American by three publications and on the watch lists for the NABC Player of the Year, the Jersey Mikes Naismith Player of the Year and Bob Cousy Point Guard of the Year.
CAN THE JACKS MAKE IT EIGHT STRAIGHT?
SDSU has won at least a share of seven of the last eight regular season titles, including five straight. Third-year head Eric Henderson is 2-for-2 in terms of regular season titles after his squad won nine of 12 league contests during a 2021 league slate that saw four of the Jackrabbits' games cancelled by Covid-19.
SWEET RUN
Oral Roberts became the third Summit League team to reach the Sweet 16 in 2021 and the lowest seed to ever do so after the 15th-seeded Golden Eagles beat No. 2 Ohio State and No. 7 Florida before falling to No. 3 Arkansas by two points in the South Regional semifinal, 72-70.
#SUMMITBB TRIO NAMED TO LOU HENSON AWARD WATCH LIST
The Summit League had three players named to the Lou Henson Award Watch List that was released on Nov. 4. Oral Roberts' Max Abmas, the reigning Lou Henson Award honoree, was joined on the watch list by South Dakota State's Douglas Wilson and North Dakota State's Rocky Kreuser. Abmas became the second Summit League player to earn the award in 2020-21 after Oakland's Keith Benson won the inaugural award in 2009-10.
JACKS, BISON RANKED IN PRESEASON MID-MAJOR TOP 25 POLL
The top two teams in The Summit League preseason poll also ended up in the CollegeInsider.com Top 25 preseason poll. South Dakota State, the league's preseason favorite, was ranked No. 10, while North Dakota State was ranked No. 25. Oral Roberts, who was picked third in the preseaso poll, received 40 votes in the initial poll.
WULBRUN TAKES OVER IN THE MILE HIGH CITY
Denver first-year head coach Jeff Wulbrun has nine newcomers on the 15-man roster he is building for the Pioneers. The former Stanford assistant has veterans Tristan Green (5.9 ppg) and Taely Gatlin (5.3 ppg) that are both returning starters and the Pioneers' top returning scorers.
TOMMIES JOIN THE FRAY
St. Thomas will begin its first season as a league member and take part in an 18-game league slate that will feature home-and-home matchups with all 10 league members. Johnny Tauer enters his 11th season at the helm of the Tommies and owns a 152-28 (.844) all-time record. His squad won the 2016 DIII National Championship and won eight of nine MIAC regular season titles.
TEAM TRACKER
NOTING THE PIONEERS
• The Pioneers are under the direction of first-year head coach Jeff Wilbrun, who is the only new coach among the league's 10 members this season.
• The former Stanford assistant has nine newcomers on his first DU roster, joining six returners.
• Senior Tristan Green is one of two returning starters Wilbrun inherits. He is the team's top returning scorer (5.9/g) and rebounder (4.6/g).
• Transfer K.J. Hunt started an NCAA Tournament game for Morehead State last season and will look to have an immediate impact on the program. Hunt averaged 6.9 ppg a year ago in 24 starts.
NOTING THE ROOS
• Head coach Billy Donlon is back for third season leading the Roos. His first two KC squads combined for a 27-27 and went 7-7 in their first year back as a Summit League member in 2020-21.
• The Roos were the top defensive unit in the SL last season, limiting teams to 62.4 ppg
• Junior Josiah Allick, KC's top returing scorer, was a preseason all-league first team pick after averaging 14.4 ppg in 12 league starts.
• Point guard Evan Gilyard has 66 career starts between his two previous stops at New Mexico State and UTEP where he racked up 980 career points.
NOTING THE FIGHTING HAWKS
• Senior Bentiu Panoam, the team's leading returning scorer, averaged a career-best 11.3 ppg in league action a season ago.
• Panoam started the final 13 games of the season and was second on the team in scoring (9.4/g).
• Newcomer A'jahni Levias was tops on his Central Wyoming College team in scoring (17.6), rebounding (8.3) and field goal percentage (52.3) while only playing 21.4 mpg a season ago.
• The Fighting Hawks have six non-conference home games after having zero in 2020-21.
NOTING THE BISON
• Head coach David Richman's roster is equipped with three preseason all-league team honorees that all averaged double figures in 2020-21.
• Senior Rocky Kreuser led team in scoring (15.7) and rebounding (7.0) and capped his season with a career-high 34 in Summit League title game.
• Classmates Sam Griesel and Tyree Eady both averaged 11.5 ppg in overall games.
• Griesel upped his average to 12.3 ppg in league tilts, while Eady averaged 10.9 ppg in those contests.
• Maleeck Harden-Hayes rounded out a quartet of Bison averaging in double figures in league play as he chipped in 10.0 ppg in 12 contests.
• NDSU has made the NCAA Tournament in four of last eight seasons, which is the most among SL squads.
NOTING THE MAVERICKS
• Head coach Derrin Hansen is the longest-tenured head coach in the league, entering his 18th season with the Mavericks.
• Sophomore La'Mel Robinson's 11.9 ppg clip in league play was the best among all freshmen in 2020-21.
• Forward Wanjang Tut joins Robinson to give Hansen a pair of returning starters to work with this season. Tut averaged 8.8 ppg in 20 starts a year ago.
• Omaha opens the 2021-22 campaign with a home game against Hastings on Nov. 9, but will embark on a five-game road swing after that includes a trio of games against Power-5 opponents.
NOTING THE GOLDEN EAGLES
• Paul Mills became just the third Summit League head coach to lead a team to the Sweet 16 last season.
• The Golden Eagles are coming off their first #SummitMBB Tournament title since 2012 and beat Ohio State and Florida in the opening two rounds of the 2021 NCAA Tournament.
• Preseason All-American Max Abmas has scored 1,134 career points in his first two seasons at ORU and is the reigning Lou Henson National Player of the Year.
• Abmas drilled (100) 3-pointers a year ago and the Golden Eagles made 323 as a team. Both figures were good second most in Division I. The team's 11.1 makes per game topped the national charts.
NOTING THE TOMMIES
• Head coach Johnny Tauer enters his 11th season at the helm of the Tommies and the UST alum has twice been named the DIII National Coach of the Year (2011 and 2016).
• The Tommies have won 20-plus games in seven of the last 10 seasons under his guidance.
• Junior guard Anders Nelson has racked up 1,005 career points in just 65 games (15.5 ppg) and gives Tauer a formidable floor general to open the program's Division I era.
• UST will not be eligible to compete in the 2022 #SummitMBB Championship in March.
NOTING THE COYOTES
• Head coach Todd Lee returns for this third season leading the Coyotes, who are coming off a second-place finish in league play.
• The Coyotes ranked third in both scoring offense (79.0 ppg) and scoring defense (72.1 ppg) in league play last year en route to a second-place finish.
• Unfortunately for Lee, he will be down a pair of 20-plus point scorers from a season ago in A.J. Plitzuweit (injury; 22.1 ppg) and Stanley Umude (transfer; 20.9 ppg). Plitzuweit is expected back for the 2022-23 after being named the 2021 Summit League Newcomer of the Year.
• Besides the scoring prowess, USD was also solid on the defensive end a year ago, topping the charts in field goal percentage defense in overall and league games.
• Forward Tasos Kamateros averaged 4.0 ppg in eight non-conference games, but upped that to 9.9 ppg in 15 league contests a year ago.
NOTING THE JACKRABBITS
• The Jacks are eyeing at least a share of their fifth regular season title and eighth in the last 10 years.
• SDSU was the highest scoring team in the league a year ago at 82.0 ppg and returns a pair of all-league first team performers in junior Baylor Scheierman and senior Douglas Wilson.
• Scheierman ranked among the top 11 in league play in scoring (15.1 ppg; 11th), rebounding (9.4 rpg; 2nd) and assists (4.7 apg; 1st). His 8.7 defensive rebounds per game was second among Division I players.
• Wilson the 2020 Summit League Player of the Year, is the team's top returning scorer after posting a 16.5 ppg average in 2020-21.
NOTING THE FIGHTING LEATHERNECKS
• WIU won five league games a season ago under first-year head coach Rob Jeter after combining to win just four total in the previous two seasons.
• Graduate student Will Carius was a preseason all-league second team pick after averaging 16.4 ppg in his first season of Summit League play.
• Western Illinois led the league in offensive rebounding a year ago, pulling down 11.8/g.
• Tamell Pearson led that charge, pulling down 2.6 per game, which was second among all players in league action.
• Transfer Trenton Massner earned All-Southland second team honors a season ago, averaging 13.1 ppg at Northwestern State.
#SummitMBB
