SIOUX FALLS, S.D. — South Dakota men's basketball was picked to finish seventh in the Summit League Men's Basketball Preseason Poll Tuesday morning. The voting panel included the league's nine head coaches, sports information directors and select media members.
 
Kansas City was tabbed as the favorite to win the league with 514 points and 17 first-place votes. The Roos return five players who started 10 or more game a season ago, including Preseason All-Summit League First-Team selection Jamar Brown who started all 32 games and lead the team at 15.0 points per game last year. The Roos return just under sixty percent of their scoring from last season, including three of their top four players in points per game.
 
The reigning Summit League Regular Season and Tournament Champions, South Dakota State, were picked to finish second with 474 points and 12 first-place votes. North Dakota State rounds out the top three with 384 points and three first-place votes. Oral Roberts (2), North Dakota (1) and South Dakota (1) also received first-place votes.
 
Kaleb Stewart was named to the 2024-25 Preseason All-Summit League First Team and returns as the conference's second leading scorer at 15.6 points per game behind Oral Robert's Isaac McBride. Stewart was named an all-conference honorable mention and to the all-newcomer team in his first season with the Coyotes last year.
 
Stewart poured in 44 points on 16-of-31 shooting with eight three-pointers in a 110-111 loss at Denver on Jan. 25 last season, which ranked second in the Summit League for most points in a game. His career night also placed him in the USD record book, as he scored the fourth most points in a single game in Coyote history. Earlier in the season, Stewart led the Yotes to a 75-66 win at North Dakota State (Dec. 29), as he dropped 33 points on 13-of-22 shooting with four triples.
 
Across the season, Stewart averaged 15.6 points, 1.8 rebounds and 1.6 assists per game, while shooting .454 percent from the field, .426 percent from deep and .829 percent at the free throw line. In Summit League play, Stewart increased his scoring average to 18.2 points per game on shooting splits of .466/.446/.902. He scored in double-digits in all but two conference games and had 22 double-digit scoring performances in total.
 
ORU's Isaac McBride was named the Summit League Preseason Player of the Year and is the league's top returning scorer at 19.8 points per contest. McBride had 17 games last season with 20 or more points and eclipsed 30 twice. McBride also averaged 3.5 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 0.9 steals per contest while shooting .449 percent from the field and .396 from deep.
 
South Dakota begins the regular season with three straight home games starting on November 4 against Southern. The Coyotes kick off Summit League play against the preseason favorites, Kansas City, in Kansas City, Missouri on January 2.
 
Rank   Team (First Place Votes)                   Points

1. Kansas City (17)                                    514
2. South Dakota State (12)                        474
3. North Dakota State (3)                          384
4. St. Thomas                                           308
5. Oral Roberts (2)                                    305
6. North Dakota (1)                                   283
7. South Dakota (1)                                   250
8. Omaha                                                 159
9. Denver                                                 158

2024-24 Preseason Summit League Player of the Year
Issac McBride, Oral Roberts

Preseason All-Summit League First Team
Kendall Blue, St. Thomas, (11.5 ppg, 4.2 rpg)#
Jamar Brown, Kansas City, Sr., G (16.5 ppg, 5.8 rpg)#
Treysen Eaglestaff, North Dakota, Jr., G (12.8 ppg, 1.9 rpg)#
Amar Kuljuhovic, North Dakota, Sr., F (9.6 ppg, 10.3 rpg)#
Issac McBride, Oral Roberts, Gr., G (20.0 ppg, 3.1 apg)#
Kaleb Stewart, South Dakota, Sr., G (15.6 ppg; 1.6 apg)#

Preseason All-Summit League Second Team
Oscar Cluff, South Dakota State (7.5 ppg, 4.7 rpg)**
DeAndre Craig, Denver (5.5 ppg, 2.6 apg)#
Kalen Garry, South Dakota State (5.9 ppg, 2.8 rpg)#
Marquel Sutton, Omaha (14.3 ppg, 6.8 rpg)#
Jacari White, North Dakota State (11.3 ppg, 4.3 rpg)#

*Preseason Player of the Year automatically earns a spot on first team
#stats are from 2023-24 Summit League games
**stats are from 2023-24 Pac 12 conference games