Both South Dakota State and Kansas City saw their respective Summit League tournament runs come to an end at the hands of eventual champion South Dakota last week. Fortunately for both, those losses would not be the last time either took the floor this season.
Both the Jackrabbits and Roos accepted bids to the Women’s National Invitation Tournament, ensuring postseason basketball for the pair. For the Jackrabbits, it was likely a tad deflating, as they surely held out hope they’d done enough to secure a second consecutive at-large invitation to the NCAA Tournament. Nonetheless, they’ll make their fifth appearance in the WNIT, while the Roos parlayed a 23-win season into their second appearance.
Here’s more on what’s at stake for each team, and what they can expect in the first round.
South Dakota State (23-9)
Opponent: Ohio Bobcats
Record: 15-14 (9-10 MAC)
NET: 128
Most Recent: 80-67 loss to Toledo, first round MAC Tournament
Aaron Johnston talked about his team’s mindset heading into an uncertain week after the Summit League championship game.
“We really didn’t talk about A and B, we just really wanted this for this team a lot,” he said. “They were close, I thought we did a lot that it takes to win and it just didn’t happen. We’ll regroup, just like we’ve done throughout the year, get through the adversity piece and see what comes next.”
As it turns out, it’s the Bobcats that come next, and the WNIT is familiar territory for them. This will be Ohio’s fifth appearance since 2016, all under a coach in Bob Boldon who has ushered in a golden era for the program since taking over in 2013. The Bobcats made the 2015 NCAA Tournament and won a program-record 30 games in 2018-19, but this year’s edition finished eighth in the MAC and was dropped out of the first round of the MAC Tournament by top-seeded Toledo.
So what awaits the Jackrabbits when Ohio gets to Brookings?
For one, SDSU may find itself tested when it has the ball in its hands, especially as Paige Meyer remains sidelined due to injury. The Bobcats main strength is their pressure defense, which forced 13 turnovers per game against Division I opponents – the 29th best mark in the country this season. Lindsey Theuninck, however, may be more than ready to deal with that pressure. The redshirt junior was rock solid as she stepped into an expanded role following Meyer’s injury, turning it over just two times in 69 total minutes over the Jackrabbits three-game run in Sioux Falls.
On the other side of the ball, SDSU will need to deal with a team led by a potent scoring trio. Senior guard Cece Hawkins led the team in scoring (22.4 ppg), while landing on the all-MAC first team and winning Co-Defensive Player of the Year honors. She was joined by redshirt junior guard Erica Johnson (16.4 ppg) and senior forward Gabby Burris (14.1 ppg) in the double-figure scoring column. The three helped a lead that wasn’t shy about letting fly from three, as the Bobcats were among the top 21 teams in the country in both three pointers attempted and three pointers made per
HerHoopStats.com.
Slowing those three will be at the top of list for seniors like Tylee Irwin and Haley Greer as they attempt to make it a third straight winning start for SDSU in the WNIT.
Kansas City (23-8)
Opponent: Northern Iowa Panthers
Record: 22-10 (13-5 MVC)
NET: 55
Most Recent: 50-48 loss to Illinois State, MVC championship
A veteran group of Roos will get a chance to continue a campaign that’s already led to the second-most wins in program history.
“It’s hard not to get emotional talking about the impact they’ve had on the program because this year was really special,” Jacie Hoyt said after Kansas City’s semifinal loss to USD.
“The way that they compete, the way that they work, they left their mark in a way that was just different. They raised the bar, they raised the standard not just as basketball players but as people.”
The next waypoint on the horizon is getting the program’s first Division I postseason win, which will need to come on the road against a Northern Iowa team that is hot. The Panthers closed the regular season on a four-game winning streak, and then stormed into the Valley championship game, beating a Missouri State team that ultimately got an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament in the semifinals.
The Panthers nearly missed cutting down the nets themselves, falling to Illinois State by just two points in a championship game in which they held a lead for most of the evening.
The three-point line may be the place to watch on Thursday in Cedar Falls. The Panthers have defended the three well throughout the year, holding their Division I opponents to just 29.3 percent from outside. The Roos, meanwhile, have shown the ability to light teams up from deep through Naomie Alnatas, Kiara Bradley and Mandy Willems. The Roos come into the game shooting 35.2 percent from long range against Division I opponents, with Willems in particular coming off a four three-pointer against the Coyotes’ stingy defense.
The Panthers are led by all-MVC first team guard Karli Rucker (12.9 ppg, 3.3 apg), as well as honorable mention all-league forward Grace Boffeli (8.5 ppg, 8.8 rpg). The freshman forward should pose a challenge to Paige Bradford and Brooklyn McDavid around the rim.
One point of encouragement as the Roos head to Cedar Falls is that the teams’ do have an interesting opponent in common. The Panthers beat a pair of Summit League foes in the non-conference – North Dakota State and St. Thomas – but the Roos did the same to an MVC opponent. That team, Southern Illinois, would go on to win the regular season title, finishing two spots above UNI. Adding another win against a Valley opponent would be another historic layer to the Roos’ season.
