BROOKINGS — South Dakota State had another slow start on Saturday morning but the Jackrabbits responded in the final three quarters again and came away with an 89-71 win over Oral Roberts.

It was the first 11 a.m. tip for the Jacks this season and SDSU head coach Aaron Johnston joked about how the early start may have played into how they were outscored 24-14 in the opening quarter. He did note that he was proud of the way his team responded and played in the final three quarters.

“We were a little loose with the ball at times [in the first quarter] and they hit five three’s, and all of the sudden you’re digging yourself a hole immediately at 11:15 on a Saturday morning. That was a challenge, but I thought our team, as they’ve done so many times this year, weathered it and stayed composed. We made some shots and got ourselves going again. … We played incredibly well for three quarters today,” Johnston said.

Oral Roberts led 9-0 and then extended the lead to 15-4.It was the second straight game that the Jacks fell behind in the opening quarter and junior guard Haleigh Timmer said how teams defend SDSU varies every game and that can sometimes lead to slow starts.

“I think every team is going to give us their best look and that might look different than what they show other teams. I think we just have to settle in and get to the open shots and lock in on defense [as the game goes along],” Timmer said.

SDSU started the second quarter fast. The Jacks scored the first 14 points of the quarter and led 28-24 with seven minutes left in the half. However, ORU responded with a 10-0 run and took a 34-28 lead two minutes later. The Jacks then outscored the Golden Eagles 10-1 in the final five minutes in the half and took a 38-28 lead into the locker room.

“That second quarter was important for us to right the ship,” Johnston said “Offensively, but then defensively too, just slowing them down.”

ORU cut the lead to 46-41 with 6:38 left in the third quarter, but back-to-back three’s from Timmer and a lay up from Mesa Byom gave SDSU a 54-41 lead. The Golden Eagles would pull to within eight heading into the fourth as it was 62-54.

SDSU used an 11-2 run early in the fourth quarter to push the lead to 76-59 and that put the game away. The run was capped off with a 3-pointer from Paige Meyer, who led the Jacks with 23 points and seven assists.

The 23 points were a season high for Paige Meyer and Johnston said the senior point guard has been playing the best basketball of her career for the past few weeks.

“She hasn’t always scored [the past few weeks], like she did today. Some of it is just having control of the game and finding the right people. Defending and figuring out what’s happening. I just think she’s playing at a really high level. I think the ability and talent is there, but I think she is willing to do whatever it takes to be successful,” Johnston said.

Brooklyn Meyer added 20 points and eight rebounds for the Jacks. Timmer had 18 points and five rebounds. Byom had nine points and 10 rebounds.

Byom is averaging 6.7 rebounds per game and while she is only averaging 7.0 points per game, Johnston said she’s one of the more important players on the team because she does a lot of the little things.

“She’s filling it up in the win column and that’s what matters. She has the go-go gadget with her length and it seems like she just extends and goes and gets a blocked shot or a rebound. But then she finishes real well. She makes free throws, she makes shots, she’s a really good passer. She’s so much more than just a rebounder and long. I thought she played really well,” Johnston said.

SDSU shot 53.6% from the field and was 12-of-23 from three. ORU shot 37.7% from the field and was 8-of-21 from beyond the arc.

The Golden Eagles had two players score 21 points in Taleyah Jones and Emma Robinson. Ruthie Udoumoh had 12 points and five rebounds. 

SDSU dominated the glass with a 44-27 advantage in rebounds. The Jacks had 17 turnovers and the Golden Eagles had 14. SDSU was 17-of-25 at the free throw line and ORU was 17-of-24.

SDSU improved to 21-3 overall and 11-0 in the Summit League. The Jacks have now won 58-straight games against Summit League opponents. Johnston said his team is aware of the win streak but doesn't talk about it.

“We don’t talk about it at all, but I think the team appreciates it. I’m not going to sit here and say that we’re not aware of it. But we don’t talk about it and we don’t say, hey, let’s keep this going as long as we can and let’s add more stress to our lives and make things harder. We just don’t. But I think every one of us is aware of it because it gets asked a lot and it’s there. I think our team appreciates it and understands it and thinks it’s pretty special. We talk about how it’s connected to so many different teams and so many different players. But not as something [we have to keep going]. At some point it’s going to end,just like everything,” Johnston said.

SDSU will hit the road next. The Jacks will travel to Fargo on Wednesday to take on the Bison at 7 p.m. SDSU will then return home next weekend for the Interstate Series against South Dakota on Saturday at 2 p.m.