The GameLike most games this time of year, tonight's game carries a little extra meaning. For South Dakota, a win wraps up a Summit League Tournament berth. For IUPUI, it's more about positioning. The Jaguars are tied with North Dakota State for fourth place in the league standings, but stand a half game behind Omaha for third.
Momentum is always a word used in conversation during the final week of the regular season. Every team wants to be playing its best ball heading into next weekend's Summit League Tournament in Sioux Falls where the slates are wiped clean and a single-elimination tournament selects the league's NCAA Tournament participant. The Coyotes have won three of their last five overall, but are 0-5 in their last five road trips. IUPUI has lost four of five following a 7-2 start in Summit play, but all four of those losses were road trips. The Jaguars have lost once in nine home games this season.
A win tonight OR a Fort Wayne win at Western Illinois would secure South Dakota's fourth consecutive Summit League Tournament berth. The Coyotes can be seeded as high as seventh at the tournament with two wins this week coupled with two losses by Oral Roberts (at Omaha, at SDSU). Regardless, should USD clinch a berth, the team will play in the evening session of the Summit League Tournament on Saturday, March 5.
The OpponentIUPUI has shrugged off a 4-11 record in non-conference play to go 8-6 against Summit League foes. That includes a 77-66 win against South Dakota on New Year's Day in the Summit League opener for both teams. Four of IUPUI's top five scorers are transfers who sat out the 2014-15 season by NCAA rule. The fifth scorer is senior guard Marcellus Barksdale, a preseason all-Summit League pick, who is averaging eight points and five boards a game. Darell Combs, an Eastern Michigan transfer, leads the team with 15 points per game. No other player averages more than 10. The Jaguars lead the Summit in steals, but netted just three against South Dakota's nine in the first meeting.
The CoyotesRoles have shifted since guard
Shy McClelland left the team six games ago. Senior
Trey Norris has filled the void to the tune of 35 minutes and 12 points per game. Junior
Tyler Flack, who was injured during the first half of the season, has reentered the starting lineup and is one of the team's top scorers, shot blockers and rebounders. Senior
Tre Burnette comes off the bench, but continues as the team's leading scorer and rebounder.
South Dakota shot 56 percent from the field last time out including an 8-for-14 effort from downtown, but was outscored 15-1 at the free-throw line in Sunday's home loss to Denver. It's the second time this season South Dakota was limited to three free-throw attempts or fewer. The good news is that South Dakota is shooting nearly 78 percent from the line in its last six games compared to 67 percent in the 23 games prior.
The VenueIndiana Farmers Coliseum originally opened in 1939 as part of President Franklin D. Roosevel's Works Progress Administration (part of the New Deal). The venue served as home for the Indiana Pacers of the ABA from 1967-74.
One Final NoteCoyote senior
Casey Kasperbauer, the nation's leading free-throw shooter, has a chance to move up USD's all-time scoring chart tonight. With 1,139 points, he stands one point shy of both Tommie King and Rob Swanhorst for 33rd place on USD's career scoring list. He's three points shy of John Hemenway, 11 points back of Don Warren, and 21 points behind Roger Faber for 30th place.
