The Game
South Dakota travels to Creighton for a 6:30 p.m. tip-off Thursday night at D.J. Sokol Arena in Omaha, Nebraska.
A live stream of the game will be available on FloHoops (subscription required). Fans can tune into the game on the Coyote Sports Network with Carter Woodiel on the call, with the radio broadcast carried on KVHT 106.3 FM in Yankton/Vermillion or by using The Varsity Network app.
The Coyotes
South Dakota (6-4) enters its final nonconference game on a four-game winning streak. The Coyotes have been taking care of business with a tough defensive showing. Last week marked just the second time since 1976 that a USD team has held back-to-back opponents to under 40 points. It marked the first time against Division I foes as the feat came against a pair of Missouri Valley teams (Bradley, 62-39; Valparaiso, 51-31). Pacing the Coyote offense continues to be the trio of super seniors in
Chloe Lamb (15.4),
Hannah Sjerven (14.7) and
Liv Korngable (11.5). Thursday night begins a three-game road stretch for the Coyotes. It's just the second true road game of the season for the Coyotes, who have played five home games and four neutral site games during its nonconference.
The Bluejays
Creighton (6-2) has not left the state of Nebraska since Nov. 10. In that span, the Bluejays have won five-straight entering Thursday with a pair of Big East victories under their belt earlier this month. Creighton also owns a 2-0 record against Summit teams with wins over Omaha (71-51) and South Dakota State (67-55). Leading the Bluejays is South Dakota native Emma Ronsiek with 14.9 points and five rebounds per game. The second-year player is shooting at a 55.3 percent clip. Morgan Maly (11.3) and Carley Bachelor (10.3) join her in double-figure scoring. The Bluejays share the ball well, averaging 19.8 assists per game (sixth in the NCAA).
The Series
South Dakota holds a 13-12 edge in the series history after five-straight wins since 2015. Scheduling changes related to the COVID-19 pandemic delayed the Coyotes' return trip to Omaha one year, but this marks the fourth meeting between head coaches
Dawn Plitzuweit and Jim Flanery since 2017. South Dakota has won all three meetings by an average margin of eight points. In South Dakota's five-game streak against Creighton, only one game has been in Omaha (2018-19).
One Last Thing
Next week the Coyotes tip-off Summit League action at Oral Roberts (Dec. 20) and Kansas City (Dec. 22). It marks the first time since the 2011-12 season that Summit play begins before Christmas.
