South Dakota State women's basketball destroys Western Illinois, men improve to 8-0
BROOKINGS – It was a rough day for the Leathernecks Saturday at Frost Arena, as South Dakota State lambasted Western Illinois in a 114-50 rout that ranked among the least competitive Summit League games the Jackrabbits have played in recent memory.
SDSU (12-8, 8-1) scored the game’s first 10 points, led 20-3 minutes later, 45-11 early in the second quarter and 62-22 by the break. That’s believed to be the school record for first half points, and it resulted in much of the game feeling like a glorified shootaround as the outcome had been decided shortly after the start.
Paige Meyer had 19 points, six assists and six steals to lead the way for SDSU on a day when everyone played and everyone contributed.
The 114 points is a Division I record for the Jacks and tied for the second most in program history. It marked SDSU’s first win by a margin of 50 or more points since they routed Coppin State in 2016, and it improved them to 29-2 all-time against the Leathernecks. It was the Jacks’ 10th straight win in the series and fourth straight overall.
“It was a really fun game,” said Jacks guard Tylee Irwin. “Everyone who got on the court played with a lot of confidence and I thought we played really hard, too. It’s always fun when you play hard and come up with a big win like that.”
Paiton Burckhard had 15 points, Irwin 14, Tori Nelson 13 to go with seven rebounds and Myah Selland added 12 points and seven boards. SDSU shot 64 percent from the floor – the second straight game in which they shot better than 60 percent, and also made all of their free throws (13-of-13) for the second game in a row. The Jacks had a whopping 45-21 rebounding advantage, outscored the Leathernecks 58-14 in the paint and forced 20 turnovers that they turned into 31 points.
Hayley Greer’s 3-pointer from the top of the key put SDSU over the century mark for the first time in two years, and there were still more than five minutes left in the game. That allowed the Jacks to empty their bench and get everyone in on the fun. Kallie Theisen had nine points and Haleigh Timmer eight, while Addison Hirschman had seven points and Mesa Byom five. Regan Nesheim played 10 minutes and had four points and four rebounds, Lauren Rongisch hit a 3-pointer and Greer had four assists in only nine minutes.
“That’s great for them,” coach Aaron Johnston said. “Those minutes are always real important, and it’s fun to see everyone get out there and play well. We didn’t really have a drop off as we went into our bench. Everyone played great.”
Elizabeth Lutz had 12 points to lead the Leathernecks, who fell to 11-7, 2-5.
“We got better throughout the game,” Johnston said. “I don’t think the game was invaluable (because of the deficit). I thought it was incredibly valuable to get better with some things. This was a good week of basketball. We played well against St. Thomas and we played well today, too.”
SDSU men's basketball improve to 8-0
South Dakota State’s men shook off a slow start to roll past Western Illinois Saturday in Macomb, improving to 8-0 in Summit League play with a 93-75 win over the Leathernecks.
Baylor Scheierman had 17 points to lead the Jacks (17-4), while Doug Wilson and Zeke Mayo had 15 points each. Mayo added six assists and five rebounds. Alex Arians had 13 points and five boards while Luke Appel had 13 points off the bench and Matt Dentlinger made all three of his shots and finished with six points and nine rebounds.
SDSU shot 61 percent from the floor, 65 percent from 3 and 91 percent from the line. Trenton Massner had a game-high 24 points to lead the Leathernecks, who shot just 24.4 percent in the first half and 35 percent for the game.
The Jacks return home this week to host North Dakota on Thursday and NDSU on Saturday. SDSU is 9-0 at Frost Arena this year.
This article originally appeared on Sioux Falls Argus Leader: South Dakota State women's basketball destroys Western Illinois
