SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – Year three of the Big Sky-Summit Challenge is officially underway, with nine contests tipping off today and nine more on deck for Saturday, Dec. 6.
 
St. Thomas begins the challenge with an 11 a.m. home tilt against Northern Arizona. Oral Roberts then hits the road to Idaho for the day’s final afternoon matchup, scheduled for 1 p.m. CT
 
Summit League women’s programs are 21-15 through the first two years of the challenge, helping the league (paired with the men’s programs) secure the event’s first two trophies.
 
Today’s nine games and Saturday's nine games will all be streamed by each conference’s digital partner. The Summit League home games will be streamed on the Summit League Network, while the Big Sky home games will be streamed on ESPN+.
 
Both conference's men's and women's basketball programs are competing in a total of 36 games with a trophy being awarded to the conference with the most points. Home wins are worth a single point, while road wins are worth 1.5 points.
 
AROUND THE LEAGUE
• After a historic 7-0 start to the season (best in Division I era), South Dakota took its first loss in a 66-59 battle at Wyoming.          
• Senior guard Angelina Robles recorded her first double-double of the season, posting a team-high 20 points and a game-high 14 rebounds against the Cowgirls.
• The Jackrabbits, who opened 5-0 for the first time in their Division I era, saw their unbeaten start come to an end in the Cancun Challenge.
• South Dakota State faced its toughest test of the season in the opening round against No. 12/10 North Carolina, falling 83-48, and followed with an 80-67 loss to Columbia the next day.
• The Jacks closed the holiday tournament on a high note, knocking off Big 12 opponent Kansas State 82–70 with three Jackrabbits scoring in double-figures.
• Preseason Player of the Year Brooklyn Meyer put together a dominant Cancun Challenge, averaging 20.7 points, 6.0 boards, 3.7 assists and 1.3 blocks while pacing the Jackrabbits across all four categories.            
• Meyer surpassed 1,500 career points on Saturday (1,505), ranking 12th in program history.
• North Dakota State went undefeated at the Osprey Thanksgiving Classic, rolling past Campbell 71-49 and Bethune-Cookman 85-36 to improve to 5-2 and notch its third straight win.
• Five Bison scored in double figures against Bethune-Cookman, while forward Avery Koenen secured her 15th career double-double with a game-high 19 points and 12 rebounds.
• Sophomore guard Marisa Frost added 16 points to extend her streak of double-figure games to three.
• Denver suffered its first loss since Nov. 9, falling on the road to UTEP 69-52.
• Sophomore standout Coryn Watts led the team with 19 points, going 4-of-9 from three-point range.
• Watts is averaging 19.6 ppg this season, which ranks second in the conference.
• Six Golden Eagles reached double-figures as Oral Roberts ended a four-game skid with an 89-74 home win over Texas A&M-Corpus Christi in its only game of the week.
• Junior guard Gentry Baldwin paced ORU with 17 points, connecting on 3-of-5 from three-point range and 6-of-8 overall from the field.
• KC slipped at home for the second straight game against Austin Peay 66-46, with Elauni Bennett pacing the Roos with 15 points.
• After shooting 53 percent from the field and 61 percent from three in their prior three games, the Roos dropped to 29.6 percent overall and 30.8 percent from deep in the loss.
• St. Thomas earned its first victory in the new Lee & Penny Anderson Arena on Sunday, defeating UW-Stout 77-40 for its second win of the season.
• Sophomore Laura Hauge led the team with a career-high 14 points, going 4-of-7 from three, while Alyssa Sand and Savannah McGowan added 13 and 11 points, respectively.
• The Mavericks look to snap a five-game losing streak in their first game of the Big Sky-Summit League Challenge at Idaho State on Wednesday.
• Cora Olsen and Avril Smith have been standouts for Omaha with Olsen averaging 17.3 ppg (fourth in the league) and Smith grabbing 10.7 rpg (first in the league).
• North Dakota fell to Boise State (65-45) and Elon (65-57) in Paradise Jam over Thanksgiving break.
• Ava Miller continues to own the glass for North Dakota, averaging 8.8 rpg (fifth in the Summit League) and 8.1 defensive boards per contest, a mark that sits tied for 11th nationally.
• UND’s Walker Demers pulls down 7.8 defensive rpg, ranking tied for 19th nationally.

This Week In The Summit League
Date | Stream/TV | Local Time
Big Sky-Summit Challenge
Wednesday, Dec. 3
Northern Arizona at St. Thomas | SLN | 11 a.m. CT
Oral Roberts at Idaho | ESPN+ | 11 a.m. PT
Kansas City at Northern Colorado | ESPN+ | 6 p.m. MT
Denver at Eastern Washington | ESPN+ | 6 p.m. PT
Weber State at (NR/RV) South Dakota State | SLN | 7 p.m. CT
Montana at North Dakota | SLN | 7 p.m. CT
Montana State at North Dakota State | SLN | 7 p.m. CT
Omaha at Idaho State | ESPN+ | 7 p.m. MT
South Dakota at Portland State | ESPN+ | 7 p.m. PT
 
Big Sky-Summit Challenge
Saturday, Dec. 6
Idaho at Denver | SLN | 12 p.m. MT
North Dakota State at Weber State | ESPN+ | 12 p.m. MT
Northern Colorado at Omaha | SLN | 1 p.m. CT
Eastern Washington at South Dakota | SLN | 1 p.m. CT
Portland State at Kansas City | SLN | 2 p.m. CT
Idaho State at Oral Roberts | SLN | 2 p.m. CT
(NR/RV) SDSU at Northern Arizona | ESPN+ | 2 p.m. MT
St. Thomas at Montana | ESPN+ | 6 p.m. MT
North Dakota at Montana State | ESPN+ | 6 p.m. MT

Tuesday, Dec. 9
Metro State at Denver | SLN | 3 p.m. MT
Omaha at (RV/RV) Nebraska | BIG+ | 7 p.m. CT
Bismarck State at North Dakota | SLN | 7 p.m. CT

Key: BIG+ (Big 10 Plus), ESPN+ (ESPN Plus), SLN (Summit League Network)
 
Rankings: (AP/Coaches) | * Summit League game
 
RESULTS
Wednesday, Nov. 26
Oakland 68, St. Thomas 52
Texas A&M Corpus Christi 74, Oral Roberts 89

Thursday, Nov. 27
(12/10) North Carolina 83, (RV/RV) SDSU 48
               (Cancun Challenge; Cancun, Mexico)
Boise State 65, North Dakota 45
                    (Paradise Jam; U.S. Virgin Islands)

Friday, Nov. 28
North Dakota 57, Elon 65
                    (Paradise Jam; U.S. Virgin Islands)
North Dakota State 71, Campbell 49
               (Osprey Thanksgiving Classic; Jacksonville, Fla.)
(RV/RV) SDSU 67, Columbia 80
               (Cancun Challenge; Cancun, Mexico)
 
Saturday, Nov. 29
(RV/RV) SDSU 82, Kansas State 70
               (Cancun Challenge; Cancun, Mexico)
North Dakota State 85, Bethune Cookman 36
               (Osprey Thanksgiving Classic; Jacksonville, Fla.)
South Dakota 59, Wyoming 66
Austin Peay 66, Kansas City 46
Denver 52, UTEP 69

Sunday, Nov. 30
UW-Stout 40, St. Thomas 77
 
Rankings: (AP/Coaches) | * Summit League game
 
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