SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – It may be the end of the year, but The Summit League Women's Basketball season is in full swing. After the first week of league play, six of the ten members have picked up their first victories of league competition.
 
Western Illinois, South Dakota and South Dakota State head into the second week of league play with a 2-0 record to sit atop the league early in the standings. North Dakota State holds a 1-0 record after defeating in-state rival North Dakota 67-61.
 
The second week of league play gets underway Thursday at 7 p.m. CT. Unfortunately, week two will not feature a full slate of competition as COVID-19 protocols have forced the cancellations of two games. Denver's two home games against Oral Roberts (Dec. 30) and Kansas City (Jan. 1) will not be played or made up later in the season.
 
Around The Summit League (TV/Streaming) | All Game Times Central
Wednesday, December 29
St. Thomas vs. Upper Iowa | Postponed
 
Thursday, December 30
Kansas City at Omaha | 7 p.m.
North Dakota at South Dakota | 7 p.m.
North Dakota State at South Dakota State (MS2/E+) | 7 p.m.
Oral Roberts at Denver | Cancelled
 
Saturday, January 1
Oral Roberts at Omaha | 1 p.m.
North Dakota State at South Dakota (MS) | 1 p.m.
St. Thomas at Western Illinois | 2 p.m.
North Dakota at South Dakota State | 2 p.m.
Kansas City at Denver | Cancelled
 
Last Week In The League
Monday, December 20
South Dakota 90, Oral Roberts 59
South Dakota State 85, Kansas City 78
Western Illinois 72, Denver 66
Omaha 61, St. Thomas 55
 
Wednesday, December 22
South Dakota 67, Kansas City 57
South Dakota State 71, Oral Roberts 51
Western Illinois 77, Omaha 70
St. Thomas 56, Denver 48
North Dakota State 67,  North Dakota 61

COVID-19 No Contest Policy for League Games

• The Summit League's Joint Council voted unanimously to change its COVID-19 No Contest policy for the remainder of the 2021-22 men's and women's basketball league season on Tuesday.
• Originally, teams that were unable to play a scheduled league game due to positive COVID-19 cases and/or quarantine requirements would have to forfeit those contests this season, impacting league standings.
• The approved adjustment allows for institutions to request that the league declare games as no contests if a team does not have eight or more players and one or more coaches available due to COVID-19 protocols. If a team does not have that number of players or coaches due to COVID-19 protocols or local health authorities require a team to discontinue participation, the game will be declared a no contest and will not be rescheduled.
• For seeding purposes regarding The Summit League Basketball Championships, if teams have played a different number of League games due to no contests, winning percentage will be used as the first criteria to determine seeds.
• Any changes to COVID-19 policies regarding spring sports sponsored by The Summit League will be discussed at a later date.

30-Plus Point Club

• On Nov. 20, Kacie Borowicz had a record-breaking showing to help North Dakota to an 89-85 win over Montana State. Borowicz went a perfect 20-for-20 from the free throw line which beats the prior UND single-game record for most free throws made in a game set back in 1990. She finished the game with a game-high 33 points.
• Denver's Anna Jackson sunk 10 threes and scored a Denver women's basketball Division I school-record 36 points to lead the Pioneers to an 87-65 win over Texas A&M Corpus Christi on Nov. 26.
• On Nov. 27, South Dakota defeated the ACC's Pitt with the help of Chloe Lamb's career-high 30 points. She went 12-for-23 from the field with 10 of her career-high points coming in overtime.
• Omaha picked up its first victory of the season defeating UIC 70-58. Elena Pilakouta led the scoring effort finishing with a career-high 32 points on 14-for-18 shooting from the floor and 4-for-5 from the charity stripe.
• Kansas City defeated UT Arlington on Nov. 28 with the help of Naomie Alnatas' 38-point, seven assists performance. She went 12-for-19 from the field, including 6-for-7 from three-point range, for her second career 35-plus point game.
• On Dec. 4, Hannah Sjerven scored a career-high 35 points to lead the Coyotes to a 71-59 victory over Wichita State. She had equaled her season-high by halftime, then added on 10 second-half points to tally a career-best 35. She knocked down 11-for-17 (64.7 percent) from the floor and went 12-for-15 from the charity stripe.

 Top 25 National Rankings

• The Coyotes continue to be ranked in the CollegeInsider.com Women's Mid-Major Top 25 Poll coming in at No. 16.
• South Dakota State, Kansas City and Western Illinois continue to be a topic of conversation in the CollegeInsider.com's poll. They didn't break into the top 25 but are receiving votes in the poll. It is the Jacks' third consecutive week receiving votes, the Roos' sixth and the Leathernecks' fourth.

Among the NCAA's Top 25
Team
Assist-Turnover Ratio
(16) Western Illinois | 1.28
Assists
(15) Kansas City | 213
(18) Western Illinois | 212
Blocked Shots
(4) Denver | 81
Blocked Shots Per Game
(9) Denver | 6.2
Defensive Rebounds Per Game
(19) Western Illinois | 30.2
Free Throw Attempts
(7) Western Illinois | 276
(13) Oral Roberts | 260
Free Throws Made
(4) Western Illinois | 194
(5) Oral Roberts | 193
Free-Throw Percentage
(8) North Dakota | 78.9
Rebounds
(20) Kansas City | 531
Scoring Offense
(16) Western Illinois | 80.9
Three-Point Field Goals Attempted
(3) Denver | 370
(8) Western Illinois | 341
Three-Point Field Goals Made
(3) Western Illinois | 124
(14) Denver | 111
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game
(13) Western Illinois | 9.5
 
Individual
Assists
(18) Naomie Alnatas, Kansas City | 66
(20) Indeya Sanders, Denver | 65
Blocked Shots
(25) Hannah Sjerven, South Dakota | 24
Double-Doubles
(13) Brooklyn McDavid, Kansas City | 6
Field Goal Attempts
(19) Chloe Lamb, South Dakota | 187
Field Goals Made
(8) Danni Nicholas, Western Illinois | 92
(11) Brooklyn McDavid, Kansas City | 90
(14) Naomie Alnatas, Kansas City | 88
(20) Chloe Lamb, South Dakota | 86
Field-Goal Percentage
(25) Danni Nichols, Western Illinois | 57.5
Final Points
(7) Danni Nichols, Western Illinois | 247
(8) Naomie Alnatas, Kansas City | 243
(24) Brooklyn McDavid, Kansas City | 219
Free Throw Attempts
(7) Uju Ezeudu, Denver | 80
(7) Hannah Sjerven, South Dakota | 80
(12) Danni Nichols, Western Illinois | 78
(15) Jada Thorpe, Western Illinois | 74
Free Throws Made
(5) Uju Ezeudu, Denver | 64
(11) Danni Nichols, Western Illinois | 57
(21) Hannah Sjerven, South Dakota | 51
Free-Throw Percentage
(2) Kacie Borowicz, North Dakota | 97.6
Offensive Rebounds Per Game
(21) Brooklyn McDavid, Kansas City | 4.2
Three-Point Field Goals Attempted
(4) Anna Jackson, Denver | 103
(7) Meghan Boyd, Denver | 100
(16) Mandy Willems, Kansas City | 91
Three-Point Field Goals Made
(6) Anna Jackson, Denver | 41
(15) Mandy Willems, Kansas City | 34
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game
(17) Anna Jackson, Denver | 3.15
Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage
(1) Naomie Alnatas, Kansas City | 57.8
(17) Anna Deets, Western Illinois | 47.3
 
*As of 12/23/21
 
TEAM TRACKER
NOTING THE PIONEERS

• Denver started the first week of league play 0-2 after falling to both Western Illinois (72-66) and St. Thomas (56-48) on the road.
• Against the Leathernecks, four Pioneers recorded double-figure scoring efforts. Meghan Boyd paced the Pios finishing with 19 points that included three from beyond the arc and eight free throws.
• Uju Ezeudu notched her third straight double-double and the 11th of her career finishing with 17 points and 11 rebounds. She also added three steals and three blocks in the loss.
• Anna Jackson poured in 13 of her own points to go with three rebounds.
• Tess Santos rounded out the double-figure scorers finishing with 11 points, nine rebounds, three assists, two blocks and a steal.
• Ezeudu led the Pioneers against the Tommies finishing with a game-high-tying 17 points. She also recorded five rebounds, three steals and two blocks in the loss.
• Jackson was the only other Pioneer to finish in double figures as she tallied 12 points to go along with three steals.
• Both the Pioneers' upcoming games against Oral Roberts and Kansas City were cancelled due to COVID-19 protocols.

NOTING THE ROOS

• The Roos started league play 0-2 after suffering losses at home to South Dakota State (85-78) and South Dakota (67-57).
• Against the Jackrabbits, four Roos finished with double figures. Naomie Alnatas led the efforts recording her fourth 20-point performance of the season as well as adding six assists to her stat line.
• Paige Bradford scored 17 points, grabbed eight rebounds, dished out three assists and shot 58.3 percent from the field.
• Brooklyn McDavid recorded 16 points while RaVon Nero came off the bench and finished with 14 points, four assists and a pair of steals in 17 minutes of action.
• In the loss to the Coyotes, Alnatas once again led the Roos finishing with 19 points, four assists, four rebounds and two steals.
• McDavid posted her sixth double-double of the year logging 16 points and 10 rebounds in a full 40 minutes.
• The Roos' upcoming game against Denver was cancelled due to COVID-19 protocols.

NOTING THE FIGHTING HAWKS

• North Dakota dropped its league opener falling to in-state rival North Dakota State 67-61 at home.
• Kacie Borowicz led the offensive effort for UND scoring 25 points, pulling down seven rebounds and dishing out four assists.
• Olivia Lane recorded a double-double of 13 points and 11 rebounds in the loss.
• DJ Davis came off the bench and finished with eight points and two assists.
• Defensively, Melissa Leet led the pack finishing with 10 rebounds to go along with three blocks.
• The Fighting Hawks shot 47.8 percent (22-for-46) from the field, 46.7 percent (7-for-15) from behind the three-point line and 83.3 percent (10-for-12) from behind the charity stripe.

NOTING THE BISON

• The Bison had three reach double-figure scoring efforts to help propel them to a league opening 67-61 victory over North Dakota.
• Heaven Hamling led NDSU finishing with her seventh straight double-digit scoring performance with a team-high 17 points. She also added six rebounds, four assists and two steals to her stat line.
• Ryan Cobbins chipped in 15 of her own to go along with three rebounds in the win.
• Kadie Deaton rounded out the double-figure scorers for the Bison finishing with 12 points on 4-for-6 shooting.
• As a squad, NDSU shot 40.6 percent (28-for-69) from the field with eight different players scoring during the game.
• The Bison scored a game-high 17 points off of turnovers to go along with 18 points in the paint.

NOTING THE MAVERICKS

• Omaha split its opening week of league play defeating St. Thomas (61-55) to open the week but then falling to Western Illinois (77-70).
• Elena Pilakouta paved the way for the Mavericks in their league opener finishing with 18 points. She also hauled down a team-best seven rebounds in the victory.
• Joining Pilakouta in double digits was Lauren Frost and Katie Keitges. Frost finished with 12 points on 5-for-8 shooting while Keitges scored 11 points, including three baskets from behind the arc.
• Pilakouta continued to lead the team in the Mavericks' loss to Western Illinois. She notched her first double-double of the season scoring 20 points and a team-high 11 rebounds.
• Keitges and Alexis Pratt also joined her in double-figure scoring both finishing with career-high point totals.
• Keitges scored 16 points including two shots from behind the three-point line while Pratt scored 16 to go along with her career-best seven assists.

NOTING THE GOLDEN EAGLES

• The Golden Eagles started league play with an 0-2 record after dropping both home games to South Dakota (90-59) and South Dakota State (71-51).
• Against the Coyotes, Tirzah Moore finished one rebound shy of her second consecutive double-double tallying 17 points and nine rebounds for ORU.
• Hannah Cooper paced the offense finishing with a team-high five assists. She has dished out at least five assists in five of ORU's past seven games.
• Moore continued to lead ORU in scoring as she was the only Golden Eagle to finish in double figures against SDSU. She finished with 18 points and pulled down eight rebounds in the loss.
• As a squad, ORU went 14-for-15 from behind the free throw line, marking a new single-game high for the season for free throw percentage (93.3 percent).
• The Golden Eagles' upcoming game against Denver was cancelled due to COVID-19 protocols.

NOTING THE TOMMIES

• St. Thomas split the opening week of league play after it fell to Omaha (61-55) but bounced back and defeated Denver (56-48) for its first-ever Summit League victory.
• The 48 points allowed by the Tommies against the Pioneers were the lowest amount of points allowed to an NCAA Division I opponent this season by St. Thomas.
• Heading into the game with UST, Denver had scored 66 or more points in six-straight contests.
• Four Tommies finished in double-figure scoring in the win. Erin Norling led the efforts finishing with 17 points to go along with nine rebounds, a pair of assists, a block and a steal.
• Jade Hill followed Norling notching 14 points to go along with five rebounds, four assists, three steals and a block.
• Kaia Porter and Kate Burns rounded out the double-figure scorers for St. Thomas finishing with 11 and 10 points, respectively.
• The Tommies upcoming game against Upper Iowa was postponed due to COVID-19.

NOTING THE COYOTES

• South Dakota extend its win streak to seven games after picking up two road victories over Oral Roberts (90-59) and Kansas City (67-57) to open league play.
• Against ORU, five Coyotes reached double-figures led by Chloe Lamb's 18 points. She knocked down half of the Coyotes' eight three-pointers and dished out five assists in the win.
• Grace Larkins finished with a career-high 15 points while Liv Korngable went 6-for-9 from the floor for 13 points.
• Kyah Watson and Maddie Krull rounded out the double-digit scorers against ORU finishing with 11 and 10 points, respectively.
• Korngable carried her momentum into the game against the Roos finishing with a game-high 20 points en route to handing KC its second consecutive loss.
• Lamb scored 18 points, pulled down eight rebounds, dished out three assists and tallied three steals. Hannah Sjerven added 11 points and six boards.
• Watson was the fourth and final Coyotes to finish in double figures against the Roos finishing with 11 points.

NOTING THE JACKRABBITS

• South Dakota State started league play with a 2-0 record after defeating Kansas City (85-78) and Oral Roberts (71-51) on the road.
• Paige Meyer opened league play pouring in 22 points on 6-for-8 shooting. She also grabbed seven rebounds, dished out four assists and tallied a steal en route to helping the Jacks snap Kansas City's 10-game winning streak.
• Myah Selland added 19 points and six rebounds in the efforts, both season highs. Kallie Theisen added a career-best 14 points and nine rebounds while Tori Nelson chipped in 14 points of her own.
• Meyer continued to pace the Jacks against Oral Roberts just missing a double-double with 11 points and nine assists.
• Paiton Burckhard scored a team-high 14 points while Tylee Irwin (12) and Nelson (11) rounded out the double-figure scoring efforts against ORU.

NOTING THE LEATHERNECKS

• Western Illinois extended its win streak to six consecutive games after defeating Denver (72-66) and Omaha (77-70) to open league play at home.
• The Leathernecks are now 8-0 inside Western Hall, the best since the 2016-17 season.
• Against the Pioneers, Danni Nichols notched her first double-double of the season finishing with 19 points and ten rebounds.
• Jada Thorpe chipped in 15 points, three assists and three steals in the victory while Evan Zars contributed 13 points and eight rebounds.
• Mallory McDermott rounded out the double-figure scorers going a perfect 3-for-3 from behind the arc to produce 11 points.
• The Leathernecks overcame a double-digit deficit to defeat the Mavericks and clinch its second league victory of the season.
• Nichols tied a career-high 27 points that included 13-for-15 shooting from behind the free-throw line.
• Zars chipped in 14 points, nine rebounds and four assists while Alissa Dins and Thorpe chipped in 11 points of their own in the efforts.