“We were able to win twice and they beat us once,” Williams said. “We just lost at the wrong time.”
South Dakota State reversed two regular season losses to the Coyotes with a 61-55 victory in the Summit League women’s basketball tournament championship game at the Denny Sanford PREMIER Center, earning the league’s automatic berth in the NCAA Tournament.
It’s the seventh trip to the “Big Dance” for the Jackrabbits in the last eight seasons. USD (26-6) will more than likely be headed for the WNIT.
A record crowd of 8,647 watched SDSU (26-6) take command in the fourth quarter, snapping a 16-game Coyote win streak. Included in that run were two victories over the Jackrabbits.
“This is certainly a disappointing loss for us, no question about it,” Willams said. “At the beginning of the season we talked as a group about really fully committing and being all in as a group and this team did that all season.
“We said if you do that let the chips fall where they may and we can be satisfied and hold our heads high knowing that we did everything the right way. This team definitely did that all season long and we proved we’re one of the best teams in this league and we feel capable of competing with the best teams in the country. This disappointing loss doesn’t change any of that.”
SDSU sophomore Macy Miller, the tournament’s most valuable player, recorded her second career double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds.
“The last two games of the regular season, we didn’t play the way we wanted to,” Miller said, “and we knew coming into this, we needed mental toughness.”
Neither team shot well (each finished at 33.9 percent) but the Jacks – unlike South Dakota – were able to convert from the free throw line. SDSU was 16-for-23 from the stripe and the Coyotes 10-for-19.
“Our transition defense in the second half wasn’t as good as it should have been,” USD senior Nicole Seekamp said. “They’re a great transition team and I thought sometimes that we kind of got lost and that’s when they made big plays. We gave it our all but they kept coming back at us and made a few more shots than us.”
Seekamp, the most valuable player in the Summit League, scored a game-high 22 points. Kelly Stewart had 11 points and eight rebounds.
“It was definitely a battle but there were those little things that end up adding up,” Stewart said. “In the transition game we didn’t get matched up and then they hit some big threes and the little things throughout the stat sheet add up.”
Seekamp and Stewart were each named to the all-tournament team.
Tia Hemiller’s three-pointer with 2:45 left were the final points of the first quarter, which ended with USD in front 11-10. A Kate Liveringhouse basket at the 7:50 mark of the second quarter gave the Coyotes their biggest lead, 18-12, before they settled for a 27-26 halftime lead.
Ellie Thompson’s bucket with three seconds remaining put SDSU on top 40-38 at the end of the third quarter and all-tournament pick Madison Guebert nailed a three to start the fourth. USD battled, but the Jacks seemed to have an answer each time.
Seekamp’s steal and layup with 4:35 left kept the Coyotes within three points, but SDSU went on a 12-2 run to take a 10-point cushion with a minute to play.
“It was a great win for us, a great second half,” South Dakota State Coach Aaron Johnston said. “We defended really well in the second half and made some big stops when we needed to. I’m proud of our entire group for rising to the occasion.
“Congratulations to USD, that group of seniors did a lot for their women’s basketball program. They did not get the result I know they wanted today but nonetheless that’s a special group and they deserve a lot of credit for what they’ve done.”
Guebert, a freshman, added 14 points for the Jackrabbits while Thompson had 11 points and seven rebounds.
SOUTH DAKOTA STATE (61)
Clarissa Ober 2-10 2-5 7, Ellie Thompson 4-9 3-4 11, Kerri Young 2-6 2-2 7, Madison Guebert 5-11 1-2 14, Macy Miller 5-11 6-8 18, Alexis Alexander 1-2 0-0 2, Gabrielle Boever 0-4 2-2 2, Chloe Cornemann 0-3 0-0 0. Totals 19-56 16-23 61.
SOUTH DAKOTA (55)
Margaret McCloud 2-6 1-2 5, Tia Hemiller 1-7 1-2 4, Kelly Stewart 4-9 1-6 11, Caitlin Duffy 2-4 0-0 6, Nicole Seekamp 8-17 6-7 22, Jasmine Trimboli 0-4 0-0 0, Allison Arens 0-1 0-0 0, Jaycee Bradley 0-0 0-0 0, Bridget Arens 0-2 1-2 1, Kate Liveringhouse 1-5 0-0 2, Heidi Hoff 1-1 0-0 2, Abigail Fogg 1-3 0-0 2. Totals 20-59 10-19 55.
South Dakota State 10 16 14 21 -- 61
South Dakota 11 16 11 17 -- 55
3-point shots – SDSU 7-19 (Guebert 3-6, Miller 2-3, Young 1-3, Ober 1-3, Boever 0-3, Cornemann 0-1), USD 5-15 (Stewart 2-4, Duffy 2-3, Hemiller 1-3, Seekamp 0-3, Trimboli 0-2). Fouled out – None. Rebounds – SDSU 43 (Miller 10), USD 45 (Stewart 8). Assists – SDSU 11 (Boever 4), USD 12 (Duffy 4). Turnovers – SDSU 15, USD 12. Total fouls – SDSU 16, USD 19.
Link : http://siouxcityjournal.com/sports/basketball/college/usd/record-crowd-watches-jacks-win-summit-tourney/article_b8564531-33f1-5ac6-9617-603cd3b84e34.html
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