South Dakota senior guard Mason Archambault, junior guard Kruz Perrott-Hunt, and redshirt sophomore guard A.J. Plitzuweit were selected to the Summit League Preseason Second Team as announced by the conference Tuesday. All three are returning all-conference performers. In addition, the Coyotes were tabbed to finish third in the conference behind Oral Roberts and South Dakota State.  
 
Archambault returns for his senior campaign following a career year for the Rapid City native. Archambault started all 31 games for USD and finished the year with 14.5 points per game, 2.3 assists per game, and 3.4 rebounds per game. He scored double-digit points in all but one Summit League game highlighted by a career-high 27 points at St. Thomas on Jan. 22.  Archambault also got it done on the defensive end as he finished fifth in the conference with 1.2 steals per game and led the team with 16 blocks on the season. He was nearly automatic from the charity stripe, knocking down 133 of 143 attempts which earned him the second-best free-throw percentage in the nation at 93 percent.
 
Perrott-Hunt burst onto the scene last year and comes back for his junior season at South Dakota. The 6-3 guard led the team and finished ninth in the conference in scoring with 15 points per game while adding a team-high 71 assists on the year. He hauled in 4.1 rebounds per game including a career-best eight rebounds in three separate games. Perrott-Hunt recorded five 20-plus point performances including a career-high 25 points against Tennessee State and Denver. The Auckland, New Zealand, native shot 41.1 percent from the floor, 42.1 percent from deep, and 84.3 percent from the free-throw line.
 
Plitzuweit is cleared to return for his redshirt sophomore season following an injury that kept him out of the 2021-22 season. In the 2020-21 season, Plitzuweit was regarded as one of the best all-around players in the conference. He averaged 19 points per game while grabbing 4.2 rebounds per game and dishing out 3.9 assists per game. His 19 points per game average ranked second in the conference and his 3.9 assists led the Summit League.  The Vermillion, South Dakota, native recorded a career-best 37 points twice in his sophomore season with one of those games coming against Oral Roberts when he also knocked down a career-best eight three pointers on 11 attempts. Plitzuweit was a member of the all-Summit League First Team and was named the Newcomer of the Year in 2020-21.
 
South Dakota's upcoming season will be the first under head coach Eric Peterson. The Coyotes are coming off a 19-12 season and entered the Summit League Tournament as the No. 5 seed. USD knocked off Kansas City in the first round by a final score of 74-61 before falling in the semifinal game. The season tips off against Wisconsin on Nov. 7 in Madison, Wisconsin.
 
Preseason Player of the Year
Max Abmas, Oral Roberts
 
First Team
Max Abmas, Oral Roberts
Luke Appel, South Dakota State
Frankie Fidler, Omaha
Trenton Massner, Western Illinois
Zeke Mayo, South Dakota State
Grant Nelson, North Dakota State
 
Second Team
Mason Archambault, South Dakota
Issac McBride, Oral Roberts
Kruz Perrott-Hunt, South Dakota
A.J. Plitzuweit, South Dakota
Tevin Smith, Denver

Poll (1^st) | Total Points
1.   Oral Roberts (28) | 731
2.   South Dakota State (11) | 668
3.   South Dakota (1) | 602
4.   North Dakota State | 549
5.   Denver | 432
6.   Kansas City | 310
7.   Western Illinois | 294
8.   St. Thomas | 289
9.   Omaha | 279
10. North Dakota | 174