The Game
The South Dakota Showdown Series shifts to Vermillion with South Dakota welcoming in-state rival South Dakota State to the Sanford Coyote Sports Center Saturday night. The two teams have split their last six meetings, but only one of those took place in Vermillion. This is the first matchup in Vermillion in two years.
The game will be televised by Midco Sports, and that broadcast can be found on ESPN+ and Midco Sports Plus with a paid subscription. A free stream is provided on GoYotes.com. Fans can tune into the game on the Coyote Sports Network with John Thayer, carried on KVHT 106.3 FM in Yankton/Vermillion or by using The Varsity Network app.
The Series
Saturday's game will be the 230th installment between these two rivals. The Coyotes have a 65-37 edge at home in Vermillion while the Jacks lead the overall series 131-98.
The Coyotes
South Dakota has won six of its last seven after a 0-3 start to conference play. The Coyotes are coming off a 71-58 victory over North Dakota on Jan. 29. Tasos Kamateros had season-highs of 21 points and 12 rebounds in leading the Coyotes to a bounce-back win. Kamateros has had two double-doubles in his last three games. Kruz Perrott-Hunt and Mason Archambault dropped in 12 points apiece last Saturday. Looking for some bench production, Erik Oliver and Damani Hayes scored 11 points each to provide a spark for the Coyote offense.
Mason Archambault scored 16 points to lead four South Dakota players in double figures in the previous meeting with SDSU. Hunter Goodrick tied his career-high of 15 points while Boogie Anderson and Kruz Perrott-Hunt added 10 points each.
The Jacks
South Dakota State brings the nation's fourth-longest win streak at 11 games heading in to Saturday. They are the best shooting team in the country and only top-ranked Gonzaga averages more points. Baylor Scheierman does it all for the Jacks by leading the team in all offensive categories. He averages 15.5 points per game, 8.5 rebounds per game, and 4.2 assists per game.
SDSU netted 10 three-pointers in the previous meeting against USD in Brookings on Dec. 22. Scheierman did not miss a shot in totaling 19 points and freshman Zeke Mayo scored 21 points to pace the Jackrabbit offense.
One Last Thing
The defensive end has energized this second-half run for the Coyotes. USD allows just under 70 points a game, good for third best in the Summit League. The Coyotes defense will be put to the test against the nation's second-best scoring offense that averages 86.9 points per game.
