FARGO – The most anticipated game of the season for the South Dakota State men’s basketball team lived up to the hype. But the Jacks came up short in overtime against North Dakota State and were unable to claim an outright Summit League regular season title.
Tyson Ward made a three and put NDSU 58-55 with 1:48 left in the second half. Brandon Key, who had not played major minutes in a game since the non-conference, made a basket and drew a foul to tie the game with 55 seconds left. Ward put the Bison ahead again with two free throws with 33 seconds left, but the Jacks struck back once again.
This time with a dunk by Matt Dentlinger on a feed from Key. The Bison took the last shot of regulation and it was a Vinnie Shahid free throw line fade away that bounced on the rim a couple times, but did not fall.
Dentlinger put the SDSU up 63-62 with a hook shot with 3:19 left, but Rocky Kreuser nailed a three to put the Bison up 65-63 with three minutes left. Alex Arians answered with a three of his own to put the Jacks back on top and Ward came back down the other way and made a layup to make it 68-66 Bison with 1:32 left.
Noah Freidel, who led the Jacks with 23 points, hit a three with 1:18 left to give SDSU the lead once again. Ward answered and the Bison led 70-69 with 20 seconds left. Dentlinger went up for a shot near the rim and Kreuser blocked him leading to a Dentlinger foul with six seconds left.
Kreuser made one out of two to put the Bison up 71-69. Key then drove into the lane and was fouled by Cameron Hunter, giving him two free throws with two seconds left. Key missed the first and purposely tried to miss the second, but didn’t hit the rim, so NDSU was awarded the ball. The Bison inbounded the ball, time ran out and the Bison clinched a share of the Summit League regular season title.
The Jacks were without their leading scorer in Douglas Wilson who hurt his foot against South Dakota. He was on the bench in street clothes and was using crutches. SDSU head coach Eric Henderson said Wilson is day-to-day and they are hoping he is ready to go by the Summit League Tournament.
Freidel also had eight rebounds for SDSU. Dentlinger had 20 points and six rebounds. Key had nine points and Alou Dillon had seven. Ward led the Bison with 24 points and seven rebounds. Shahid had 12 points and Kreuser had 11.
South Dakota State could have clinched the No. 1 seed in the Summit League Tournament with a win. They now need to hope for a NDSU loss at Omaha on Saturday for that to happen.
This was the final game of the regular season for the Jacks. They finished with an overall record of 22-9 and 13-3 in the Summit League. Up next, is the tournament and they are locked in to play their first game on March 7th. If they get the No. 1 seed they will play either Denver or Western Illinois. If they are the No. 2 seed they will play either Purdue Fort Wayne or North Dakota.
NORTH DAKOTA STATE 71, SOUTH DAKOTA STATE 69 F/OT
South Dakota State (22-9, 13-3)
Noah Freidel 10-20 0-0 23, Matt Dentlinger 10-14 0-2 20, Brandon Key 2-4 4-8 9, Alou Dillon 3-3 0-0 7, Alex Arians 2-9 0-0 5, David Wingett 2-4 0-0 5, Baylor Scheierman 0-6 0-0 0, Matt Mims 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 29-61 4-10 69.
North Dakota State (21-8, 12-3)
Tyson Ward 9-12 5-6 24, Vinnie Shahid 5-18 0-0 12, Rocky Kreuser 4-11 1-2 11, Sam Griesel 4-9 0-0 9, Jared Samuelson 3-8 0-1 8, Tyree Eady 2-3 2-2 6, Tyler Witz 0-1 1-2 1, Cameron Hunter 0-4 0-0 0, Chris Quayle 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 27-66 9-13 71.
Halftime – 31-30 NDSU. 3-point field goals – SDSU 7-22 (Dillon 1-1, Freidel 3-7, Wingett 1-3, Arians 1-4, Mims 0-1, Scheierman 0-3), NDSU (Ward 1-2, Griesel 1-2, Kreuser 2-6, Samuelson 2-6, Shahid 2-12, Hunter 0-3). Rebounds – SDSU 35 (Freidel 8), NDSU 39 (Ward, Samuelson 7). Assists – SDSU 14 (Scheierman 5), NDSU 11 (Ward 4). Steals – SDSU 4 (Freidel 2), NDSU 6 (Hunter 2). Blocks – SDSU 3 (Dentlinger 2), NDSU 1 (Kreuser). Turnovers – SDSU 11, NDSU 7. Total fouls – SDSU 16, NDSU 11. Fouled out – SDSU Scheierman. Technical fouls – none. A – 4,036.
