BROOKINGS – The South Dakota State women have seven games remaining on their schedule. The Jackrabbits have run through conference play so far as they are 11-0 against Summit League opponents and could clinch a share of the regular season conference title this weekend.
SDSU (18-5) has been in the conference title hunt for the past 15 seasons as the Jacks have come in first or second 13 times during that 15-year span. Even though the Jacks have a lot of experience in this position, Johnston said every year is different and SDSU has to make sure they take it game by game.
“I don’t know that anything just comes naturally,” he said. “Focusing on the task is kind of a day-by-day process. So, in practice we’re trying to find value in everything that we’re doing. How we’ll practice and prepare this week is different from how we’ll prepare this week. We really try not to just get into a groove, so to speak, where every Monday, every Tuesday is the same or is kind of built into that monotony.
“… We try and back off a bit so we can stay fresh physically and mentally. We just try to do anything we can to keep our team on a good edge. Not a nervous edge, but a good edge of understanding that we have to try to continue to get better and continue to stay hungry.”
Since the beginning of conference play SDSU is averaging 86.7 points per game while giving up just 62 points per contest, both of which are top in the conference. The Jacks have won five of their 11 conference games by more than 30 points and no one has seemed to be even close to on the same level as them in the conference.
The Jacks will face North Dakota (12-8, 5-5) on Thursday and then will take on second place North Dakota State (13-7, 7-3) on Saturday. Should The Jacks win both games this weekend and the Bison also lose to South Dakota on Thursday, they would clinch at least a share of the Summit League regular season title. SDSU beat UND 105-72 and NDSU 94-63 in the teams first meetings.
Johnston said his team played really good in the month of January, but its time to look at the final month of the regular season, where the games get bigger and more important.
“We’re going to turn the page on January here and get into February, which is exciting. That’s when games really mean a lot, and I think our team is excited for that, I really do. I think they’re really pumped up. It’s been a long year, a good year, but I think they have that sense of hey, this is coming to the finish line here and we want to play our best,” Johnston said.
One player that has been as consistent as anyone in the country is sixth year forward Myah Selland. Selland won Summit League Player of the Year two years ago and is probably going to win it again this season as she’s averaging 16.5 points per game, 6.4 rebounds and 2.7 assists. She’s also shooting 52.5% from the field, which is third in the conference only behind two post players, and is making 43.2% of her 3-point attempts.
Johnston said Selland’s play has been very consistent this season and although they haven’t really had a game that they’ve had to rely on her, he knows that she’ll be ready when that time comes.
“Quietly is really good word for [Selland’s play],” Johnston said. “I think the other word I use with Myah is efficient. She’ll go out there and score in double figures, she’ll have a handful of assists, she’ll give you a couple rebounds, she’s defending really well. But still, so far this year, we have yet so say this year, ‘okay, we’re going to put the ball in your hands and you’re going to be part of every possession.’
“Some of that is the talent around Myah and how we’re developing that, and some of it is Myah is just really efficient. Myah knows when she needs to really be locked in and when to really be assertive. She’s really becoming a good passer and getting everybody involved. Myah probably knows what I’m going to tell her before I tell he, so she understands what we’re trying to do and inserts herself when she needs to into a big play or a big possession. I’ve just been really pleased with how this year has gone.”
Should the Jacks run the table and finish conference play undefeated it would be just the second time in program history that they’ve done that. The Jacks went undefeated in Summit League play in 2020-21 but only played 14 games due to COVID. Johnston said that just like that season, they won’t really talk about going undefeated.
“I don’t know that we’ll bring up [going undefeated in conference play] at all. I think we [went undefeated] a few years ago, but the reason I bring that up is, even then I don’t think we talked about it. I don’t think we got to the end we’re like hey, we’re a couple weekends away from this. I really think we just tried to stay focused on each weekend, and tried to approach it that way. I really don’t think that will creep into our mindset at all right now,” Johnston said.
Tip-off between the Fighting Hawks and the Jacks in Grand Forks on Thursday is scheduled for 7 p.m. SDSU and NDSU will then get things started at 2 p.m. on Saturday in Fargo. Thursday’s game is on Midco Sports and Saturday’s game is not televised. You can listen to both games on the Jackrabbit Sports Network.
