The Basics
Score: No. 2 South Dakota 56, No. 1 South Dakota State 45
Records: South Dakota (27-5), South Dakota State (23-9)
Location: Denny Sanford PREMIER Center - Sioux Falls, S.D.
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – No. 2 South Dakota outlasted No. 1 South Dakota State in a gritty Summit League Women's Championship to win the Coyotes’ third consecutive tournament title, 56-45.
The low-scoring affair saw the USD defense at its finest, holding the Jackrabbits to a season-low 24.6 percent from the field. The Coyotes were paced by their star veteran trio with Hannah Sjerven (19 points, 10 rebounds), Chloe Lamb (17 points) and Liv Korngable (11 points) all scoring in double figures.
“Our ladies played with an incredible amount of toughness and fearlessness,” USD head coach Dawn Plitzuweit said after the game. “SDSU is a great, great basketball team and somehow we were able to slow them down. It came down to making some big plays, and our young ladies were able to do that.”
The Jackrabbits got big games from Paiton Burckhard (14 points) and Tylee Irwin (15 points) but were unable to get into an offensive rhythm. Sjerven in particular made life difficult in the paint for SDSU throughout the game, finishing with four blocks.
It was a slow start for both teams.
The Coyotes opened the game making just three of their first 17 shots, but the game remained close as SDSU suffered its own nearly five-minute scoring drought between the end of the first and beginning of the second quarter.
Burckhard broke that drought with a 3-pointer to put the Jackrabbits up 13-12 at the 6:39 mark, and the junior was pivotal in the first half with 12 points as Irwin and Myah Selland were saddled with foul trouble.
The teams traded baskets the rest of the half, with Lamb sending the Coyotes to the break with a 23-22 lead on a late three pointer. Despite the advantage, it was USD’s second-lowest first half output of the season, while 22 points was SDSU’s lowest such effort.
“We just didn’t get into any rhythm offensively, and that really hurt,” SDSU head coach Aaron Johnston said after the game. “We had a chance to make some plays but we just never got going offensively.”
The pace picked up after the break, with the Coyotes extending their lead to 43-36 on a Grace Larkins isolation drive to the basket to beat the buzzer at the end of the third quarter.
Neither team scored over the first 2:41 of the fourth quarter with Irwin finally opening the scoring with a triple to trim USD's lead to four points with just over seven minutes left. The Jackrabbits, however, would never get closer as their offensive struggles continued, shooting just 13.6 percent in the final period.
The win gives USD its third consecutive Summit League tournament title, making the Coyotes the first team to win that many in a row since SDSU won five straight between 2009-13.
The game was attended by 8,117 people, the third-highest women’s championship game attendance in league history. Overall, the women’s tournament saw 27,535 come through the turnstiles, the second-highest number in league history.
The Coyotes will await their seed in the NCAA Tournament, while the Jackrabbits will see if they’ll earn an at-large berth after a tremendous campaign. The NCAA Selection is set for Sunday, March 13 at 7 p.m. CT.
Turning Point
Kyah Watson drove down the lane with just under two minutes left and dropped the ball off to Sjerven, who was fouled under the basket with USD up just six. She made the two ensuing free throws to push the lead to eight with 1:37 left in the game, an advantage that proved insurmountable.
Inside the Box Score
- USD's Kyah Watson did not score, but played 25 minutes and was credited by Johnston as playing a role in a tough offensive day for SDSU star Myah Selland (5 points, 0-10 FG).
- The Jackrabbits were able to stay in the game by holding USD to just 38.3 percent from the field, the Coyotes’ second-lowest percentage against Summit League opposition this season.
- Burckhard tied her season-high with four three-pointers.
News & Notes
- The Coyotes will appear in their third straight NCAA Tournament, a streak which would sit at four straight had the 2020 tournament not been canceled. USD never appeared in more than two straight tournaments prior to this run, including at the Division II level.
- SDSU held a NET rating of 33 when the day began. The Jackrabbits will wait to hear if their name is called among the at-large teams for a second consecutive year on Selection Sunday.
- USD's Chloe Lamb won her second consecutive Championship MVP accolade after averaging 18.6 ppg in three victories.
2022 Summit League Women's Championship All-Tournament Team
- Chloe Lamb, South Dakota (MVP)
- Hannah Sjerven, South Dakota
- Paiton Burckhard, South Dakota State
- Myah Selland, South Dakota State
- Naomie Alnatas, Kansas City
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