South Dakota travels to No. 22/24 Missouri for a game at 3 p.m. Saturday inside Mizzou Arena in Columbia, Mo.
The Game
This marks the first time South Dakota faces two AP Top 25 teams in a single season since 2013-14. The Coyotes got their first AP Top 25 win in program history after beating No. 23 Iowa State in November. While the Iowa State win came in the friendly confines of the Sanford Coyote Sports Center, the Coyotes are on the road for this one. Missouri's pestering defense has held opponents to 34 percent from the field, which ranks 31st nationally, and 56 points per game. The Coyotes can alleviate that with shots falling, but also by capitalizing off Tiger turnovers.
The Coyotes
South Dakota (9-1) is off to its best start since 2008, winning seven-straight games and the Coyotes are receiving votes in the latest AP poll. Balance has been key for the Coyotes. South Dakota has had six different leading scorers through 10 games and USD spreads the wealth in scoring and rebounding. Sophomore center
Hannah Sjerven is the reigning Summit League Player of the Week after 17 points, seven blocks and seven rebounds at Missouri State. The Coyote trio of junior guard
Ciara Duffy, senior guard
Allison Arens and junior guard
Madison McKeever are all averaging double figures. South Dakota swept the Summit League a season ago and reached the quarterfinals of the Women's National Invitation Tournament.
The Tigers
Missouri (8-2) enters the game with its own five-game winning streak since a neutral-site loss to Michigan in November. The Tigers have since climbed back in to the national rankings at No. 22 in the AP Top 25 and No. 24 in the USA Today Coaches Poll. Mizzou reached its third-straight NCAA Tournament in 2018 behind two-time all-SEC guard Sophie Cunningham. The Cheryl Miller Award finalist is averaging 15 points and nearly six rebounds this year. Complimenting Cunningham is junior guard Amber Smith who has put up 14.9 points and grabbed 8.3 rebounds per game this season. Smith's six double-doubles ranks 10th nationally.
The Series
The lone meeting between South Dakota and Missouri came in the 1979 AIAW Region 6 Tournament held in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Tigers knocked the Coyotes out of the opening round 96-64. South Dakota is 0-2 all-time against the SEC with both games coming in USD head coach
Dawn Plitzuweit's tenure.
One Last Thing
The best defense leads to offense. With quick hands and tough guarding, South Dakota scores an average of 24 points off turnovers per game. The last time a Coyote team averaged more than 20 points off turnovers? USD was the 2008 NCAA Division II Runner-Up with 22.1.
