STORRS, CONN. – March madness continues as the Summit League has three women’s basketball teams taking the court for postseason action. For the third consecutive year, South Dakota State will represent the league in the NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament while Oral Roberts competes in the Women’s Basketball Invitation Tournament and North Dakota State in the Women’s National Invitation Tournament.
 
The Jackrabbits (29-3) earned the league’s automatic bid to the big dance as the No. 10 seed in the Spokane 4 Region. South Dakota State will see seventh-seeded Oklahoma State in the First Round of the NCAA Tournament on a neutral floor on Saturday, March 22 at 2:30 p.m. CT in Storrs, Conn. The game will be on ESPN2.
 
The Golden Eagles (24-8) are making their first appearance in the WBIT. Their First Round game will be in Springfield, Mo., against Missouri State tonight with the tip going up at 6:30 p.m. CT. The game will be on ESPN+.
 
The Bison (19-11) are making their third straight appearance in the WNIT and have earned a First Round bye for the second consecutive season. They will face the winner of the game between Pacific and New Mexico that tips tonight at 8 p.m. CT. The date, time and location of the second round game is to be determined.
 
All Times CT
Thursday, March 20
WBIT
Oral Roberts at Missouri State (Springfield, Mo.) | 6:30 p.m. (E+)
 
Saturday, March 22
NCAA Tournament
(10) South Dakota St. vs (7) Oklahoma St. (Storrs, Conn.) | 2:30 p.m. (E2)
 
TBD
WNIT
North Dakota State first round bye
 
Key: E+ (ESPN Plus); E2 (ESPN2)
 
TEAM TRACKER
NORTH DAKOTA STATE BISON (19-11, 11-5 SL) | @NDSUwbb
Next Up: WNIT - First Round bye; vs. winner of Pacific/New Mexico State
Previous Games: Summit League Championship - vs. No. 6 Kansas City (L, 68-58)
WNIT History (Last): 1-2 (3rd appearance, last 2024)
WNIT Best Finish (Last): Super 16 (2024)
Summit League Championship History: 5-16 (15th appearance)
Summit League Championship Titles: None
Despite a quarterfinal loss to No. 6 Kansas City in the Summit League Championship, the Bison get a chance at postseason play ... For the third consecutive season, North Dakota State is headed to the WNIT for its overall third appearance in the postseason tournament ... With a top three finish in the league standings and an overall record of 19-11 the Bison have earned a first-round bye for the second straight season and will face the winner of the Pacific/New Mexico matchup ... Avery Koenen (13.9 ppg, 7.6 rpg) and Abbie Draper (10.5 ppg, 6.8 rpg) pace the Bison, each averaging double-digits in the scoring column ... In league action, All-Summit League first teamer Koenen (17.0 ppg, 8.1 rpg) led the Bison and ranked second among Summit players in rebounding ... She had eight 20-plus point scoring efforts, including a career-high 30 against Omaha in the regular season finale ... Draper, an All-Summit League second teamer, averaged 12.3 ppg and 7.4 rpg, which ranked tied for fifth in league play ... She posted nine games in double digits, including two 20-point games and two double-doubles ... As a team, the Bison lead the league in free throw attempts per game (20.40), free throws made per game (15.17) and three-point percentage defense (28.2).
 
ORAL ROBERTS GOLDEN EAGLES (24-8, 12-4 SL) | @ORUWBB
Next Up: WBIT - at Missouri State (3/20; 6:30 p.m. CT)
Previous Games: Summit League Championship - vs. No. 7 South Dakota (W, 70-50); vs. No. 6 Kansas City (W, 95-73); No. 1 South Dakota State (L, 84-68)
WBIT History (Last): 0-0 (1st appearance)
WBIT Best Finish (Last): N/A
Summit League Championship History: 28-17 (21st appearance)
Summit League Championship Titles: 5 (1999, 2001, 2005, 2007, 2008)
A loss in the championship game hasn’t stopped Oral Roberts from the chance at some postseason action ... With an overall record of 24-8, the Golden Eagles were selected to compete in the WBIT for the first time in program history ... Oral Roberts will head to Springfield, Mo., to meet Missouri State in the opening round of the tournament on Thursday at 6:30 p.m. CT ... The Golden Eagles are led by Jalei Oglesby (17.3 ppg, 54.8 FG%) and Taleyah Jones (18.3 ppg, 43.1 FG%), two of some of the highest-scoring players in the league ... Oglesby was voted the Summit League Sixth Woman of the Year for the second consecutive season ... During league play she reached 20-plus points in half of her 16 Summit games off the ORU bench and was the league’s top-scoring reserve at 18.8 ppg, ranking fifth overall ... Jones ranks third overall in the league in scoring with 18.3 ppg ... In her 33 games played this season, she notched double-digits in the scoring column in 27 of them including 17 20-plus point performances and a season-best 30 points against Omaha on Feb. 12 ... Alongside the duo, ORU has three Golden Eagles averaging double-figures in points: Ruthie Udoumoh (12.2 ppg), Makyra Tramble (10.5 ppg) and Emily Robinson (10.0 ppg) ... As a squad, ORU has led the league in bench points per game (26.1), scoring offense (83.2), steals per game (10.2), turnover margin (5.34) and turnovers forced per game (18.75).
 
(10) SOUTH DAKOTA STATE JACKRABBITS (29-3, 16-0 SL) | @GoJacksWBB
Next Up: NCAA Tournament - vs. No. 7 Oklahoma State (3/22; 2:30 p.m. CT)
Previous Games: Summit League Championship - vs. No. 8 Omaha (W, 87-67); vs. No. 5 North Dakota (W, 84-55); vs. No. 2 Oral Roberts (W, 84-68)
NCAA Tournament History (Last): 4-10 (12 appearances, last 2024)
NCAA Tournament Best Finish (Last): Sweet 16 (2019)
Summit League Championship History: 41-5 (16th appearance)
Summit League Championship Titles: 12 (2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2018, 2019, 2023, 2024, 2025)
South Dakota State claimed its 12th Summit League Women’s Basketball Championship title after defeating second-seeded Oral Roberts in the championship game ... The Jackrabbits are about to make their 13th appearance on the big stage in their last 17 seasons of Division I postseason eligibility ... The Jacks earned the No. 10 seed and will face No. 7 Oklahoma State in the First Round on Saturday at 2:30 p.m. CT in Storrs, Conn. ... The winner of the SDSU/OSU clash will meet the winner of No. 2 UConn/No. 15 Arkansas State ... The Jackrabbits head into the tournament riding a 19-game win streak ... In the postseason honors, SDSU saw five players earn All-Summit League honors, including Head Coach Aaron Johnston who took home his ninth Coach of the Year award and fifth straight. The Jackrabbits’ leading scorers, Brooklyn Meyer (18.3 ppg, 5.7 rpg) and Paige Meyer (13.1 ppg, 5.8 rpg) were both named to the first team for the second straight year and were also selected to the All-Defensive team. Overall, Brooklyn led the Jacks with 17.4 ppg and 5.8 rpg ... Of the 32 games Brooklyn played she notched double-digits in 28 of them including three 30-plus point games ...  Summit League Women’s Basketball Championship MVP Paige finished with 20 double-figure performances in points, four of which were 20-plus points ... Haleigh Timmer completes the top scoring trio for the Jackrabbits, averaging 13.1 ppg. She also pulled down 4.1 rpg and shot 48.8 percent from the floor for the Jacks during the regular reason ... South Dakota State led the league in 12 statistic categories and rank in the top 20 nationally in six of those 12.