Press Conference: Omaha | SDSU
The Basics
Score: No. 8 Omaha 52, No. 1 South Dakota State 40
Records: South Dakota State (21-3), Omaha (6-12)
Location: The Sanford Pentagon - Sioux Falls, S.D.
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – For the first time in Summit League Women's Basketball Championship history, the No. 8 seed upset the No. 1 seed as Omaha toppled No. 21/23 South Dakota State 52-40 in the opening quarterfinal of the 2021 event at the Sanford Pentagon.
It was a stark contrast from a year ago when the Mavericks were blitzed by 59 points in the one-eight matchup.
The difference for Omaha, who is the under the direction of first-year head coach Carrie Banks, in this one was on the defensive end as Omaha limited the Jackrabbits to a season-low in points and 13 field goals.
Leading those defensive efforts was junior Mariah Murdie, who had a career-high six steals and equaled her career-high with five blocks, limiting the Jackrabbits to a 22-percent clip from the floor. In total, the Mavericks registered 14 steals and forced 20 Jackrabbit turnovers.
Murdie also hit one of the biggest baskets of the game for Omaha as her 3-pointer with two-and-half-minutes to play in the first half broke a 24-24 tie and gave the Mavericks the lead for good.
Omaha led 29-24 at the break and Claire Killian drained a 3-pointer on the opening possession out of halftime to keep the momentum on the Mavericks' side.
Murdie finished with nine points and Killian added seven, while junnior Josie Filer carried the offensive load, scoring 19 points to go with a season-high 12 rebounds. She paced all players in those categories as she compiled her second double-double of the season.
The Des Moines, Iowa native combined for 13 points in a pair of double-digit losses to the Jackrabbits in the regular season.
SDSU's Paiton Burckhard scored the first six points of the game to get the Jacks out to a quick 6-2 advantage, but she would only finish with 10 points and two more field goals the rest of the way. Fellow all-league first teamer Tyler Irwin also was held to 10 points for the Jackrabbits, who competed without Summit League Player of the Year Myah Selland.
Irwin's driving layup to close the first quarter gave SDSU an 11-10 advantage, but the contest would go back-and-forth from there until Murdie's only 3-point connection of the game.
The Mavericks will take on the winner of the No. 2 South Dakota/No. 7 Oral Roberts tilt in Monday's first semifinal at 11:45 a.m. CT.
Turning Point
Omaha's Mariah Murdie broke a 24-24 tie with a 3-pointer with 2:31 to play in the first half. A pair of Maverick free throws made it 29-24 at the break and Omaha quickly extended the lead to eight with a 3-pointer on its opening possession of the third quarter and never trailed in the second half.
Inside the Box Score
- The Mavericks held SDSU to season lows in points (40) and field goal percentage (22.4; 13-for-58)
- Omaha's Josie Filer scored a game-high 19 points to go with a season-high 12 rebounds, recording her second double-double of the season
- The Mavericks combined for 14 steals and turned 20 SDSU turnovers into 16 points. The Jacks forced 15 turnovers, but only netted four points off those Omaha miscues
- Omaha's Mariah Murdie finished with nine points, a career-high six steals and equaled her career-high with five blocks
News & Notes
- This is the first time in tournament history dating back to 1993 that the No. 8 seed upset the top seed. The lowest seed to ever win the tournament sixth-seeded Oakland in 2006. The last seed any lower to win a tournament game was seventh-seeded Western Illinois in 2012 (defeated No. 2 seed Oral Roberts)
- This was the first time Omaha and South Dakota State met in the tournament since a 76-60 win by the Jacks in the 2016 semifinals
- SDSU had won its first 11 quarterfinal matchups in tournament history dating back to 2009
- The Jackrabbits saw an 18-game overall winning streak come to an end after running the table in league play (14-0)
- This is the first opening round win for Omaha since 2017 when the Mavericks were the No. 5 seed and beat No. 4 seed South Dakota 64-58. The Mavericks were the No. 8 seed in the 2020 Championship and lost by 59 to the top-seeded Coyotes
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