WNIT and the PostseasonSaturday's game is the first time two true mid-majors have met in the WNIT Championship in the tournament's 18-year history. Both South Dakota and Florida Gulf Coast are on their first WNIT run past the second round. The Coyotes are 7-2 all-time in the tournament while the Eagles are 8-5. It's USD's third trip to the tournament in five years and FGCU's sixth WNIT. South Dakota was the regular season Summit League champion with a 15-1 league record, while FGCU went undefeated in Atlantic Sun conference play with a record of 14-0. Both programs lost in their conference tournament title games to the No. 2 seeds and received automatic berths to the WNIT. South Dakota blew out Oregon inside the DakotaDome in the semifinals with hot shooting from long range, while Florida Gulf Coast held on to beat Michigan in Fort Meyers.
Summit's First Title GameThe Coyotes are the first Summit League team, men or women, in any sport to advance to the championship game of a national postseason tournament. A win Saturday would also tie the most single-season wins in league history.
The SeriesThis is the first meeting between South Dakota and Florida Golf Coast.
Scouting South DakotaSouth Dakota uses a quick style of play coupled with well-rounded scoring to post the nation's 12th-best scoring offense at 78.4 points per game. The Coyotes are 27-1 this season when scoring at least 70 points in a game. Leading USD is the Summit League Player of the Year, senior guard
Nicole Seekamp with 16.1 points, 6.4 assists and 2.5 steals per game. Second-team honoree, senior guard
Tia Hemiller is close behind with 10.4 points, a team-high 4.9 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game. Senior guard
Kelly Stewart, who earned a spot on the Summit League All-Tournament team, has made a large impact in the WNIT averaging 13.2 points, 6.6 rebounds and 0.6 blocks in five games. In addition to scoring, the Coyotes are well-rounded in rebounding with a deep bench.
Scouting Florida Gulf CoastFlorida Golf Coast is one of the top defensive teams in the country, holding opponents to 49.4 points per game (only UCONN holds teams to less). Michigan was just the 10th team to reach 60 points against the Eagles this season. Opponents also shoot just 24.5 percent from 3-point range. FGCU is undefeated on the road this season with 12 wins, but this will be their first road trip since Feb. 27. The Eagles rank second in the nation in 3-point field goals made (365) and attempted (1,172). Atlantic Sun Player of the Year Whitney Knight averages 13.5 points per game, 7.3 rebounds per game and 3.1 blocks per game. Knight missed the first eight games of the year with a foot injury and the Eagles are 28-2 with her on the court. Teammate DyTiesha Dunson was the conference's Defensive Player of the Year. Kaneisha Atwater leads the team in scoring with 14.3 points per game and 2.8 assists per game.
From Long RangeSouth Dakota's 3-point game has been crucial in the last two games. The Coyotes shot a program record 71.4 percent (15-for-21) from downtown to cruise past Oregon in the semifinals. The Coyotes also drained 12 3-pointers to spark the offense in the quarterfinal win over Western Kentucky. FGCU ranks second in the nation in 3-point defense, holdinig opponents to 24.5 percent behind the arc.
Home Court AdvantageIn the tournament so far, the home team is at the advantage 43-19. In 18 WNIT Championships, the home team has won 11 times. Additionally, the Coyotes are 31-1 at home over the last two seasons with the only home loss to NCAA Final Four qualifier Washington. The Coyotes are on a 13-game home winning streak entering the final game in the DakotaDome.
A record-setting seasonThe 2015-16 South Dakota squad has broken single-season team records for points (2,900), assists (664), rebounds (1,536) and field goals made-attempted (
1062-2347). The Coyotes need 15 steals to take the single-season record in that category. Additionally,
Nicole Seekamp has the school record for career starts with 129 while
Tia Hemiller and
Margaret McCloud have the school record for career games played at 134.
Seekamp in the record booksSenior guard
Nicole Seekamp became the second 2,000 point scorer in USD history at Minnesota (3/20). The senior also ranks second in assists (620) and steals (265). Seekamp became the Summit League's all-time assists leader against Northern Iowa (3/24) and broke the USD single-season assists record against Western Kentucky (3/27). In Summit League record books, Seekamp has improved to fourth in points and seventh in steals. She needs 16 points to improve to third all-time in the Summit.
1,000 Point ClubSenior guard
Tia Hemiller scored her 1,000th collegiate point against Western Kentucky (3/27). She became the 14th player in program history with 1,000 points and 500 rebounds. Senior center
Margaret McCloud and junior guard
Jasmine Trimboli both reached 1,000 points at Fort Wayne (2/25). McCloud, Seekamp and Hemiller are all above 1,000 points and 500 rebounds for their Coyote careers.
DakotaDome AttendanceThe DakotaDome simply did not want to let go of Coyote basketball. Saturday will be the sixth final game in the facility. South Dakota has averaged 2,034 fans per game at home this season. The Coyotes have averaged 3,056 fans in four home WNIT games. USD packed in a record 7,882 for the 2003-04 South Dakota State game. A sellout crowd is expected Saturday.
