VERMILLION, S.D. — South Dakota basketball kicks off its last week of regular season play on the road in Fargo, North Dakota for a meeting with North Dakota State Wednesday night at 7:00 p.m. The Yotes will close out the regular season Saturday evening with Senior Day against North Dakota.
 
Quick Hitters

• The Coyotes fell in their most recent game 93-85 to Omaha, the top team in the Summit League, in Baxter Arena. Chase Forte scored a team high 25 points, grabbed six rebounds and had two steals vs the Mavericks. It was Forte's second straight game with 25+ points.
• Chase Forte leads the Coyotes and ranks No. 7 in the Summit League in points per game at 16.8.
• Forte also has the conference lead with 57 steals on the season and has 14 more steals than the next highest player (KC's Jamar Brown, 44).
• Isaac Bruns is second on the squad and ranks No. 9 in the SL at 14.6 points per game and is shooting at a .465 clip. The 6'4 guard is active on the boards as the second leading rebounder on the team at 4.2 boards per game.
• Dre Bullock and Kaleb Stewart average 12.5 and 10.0 points per game, respectively.
• The Yotes feature one of the most explosive offenses in the NCAA, ranking No. 4 in the country in scoring offense at 85.6 points per game.
• South Dakota ranks No. 1 in the NCAA in free throw makes per game (19.9) and No. 2 in free throw attempst per contest (28.0).
• The four teams scoring at a higher clip than the Yotes include Alabama (90.8), Gonzaga (87.1) and Kentucky (85.7).
• Over the last 13 games, the Yotes have scored 90+ points in six games and 100+ twice.
• USD has scored 80+ points in 21 games this season and are 14-7 when scoring 80+.

How to Follow

• Wednesday's game can be found on Midco Sports Plus and the Summit League Network.
• The radio call by John Thayer can be found on the Coyote Sports Network, KVHT 106.3 fm, or 95.7 fm, or on the Varsity Network app.

Series History vs. NDSU

• NDSU holds a 107-86 lead all-time against the Coyotes and won the first meeting of the season 103-77.
• The Bison are 60-28 in games against USD when played in Fargo, but the Yotes won last year's contest in Fargo 75-66.
• Kaleb Stewart poured in 33 points with four triples in last year's win at NDSU.
• The Yotes had five players score in double-figures led by Isaac Bruns' 17 points and Chase Forte's 15.
• Jacari White poured in a game high 32 points on 10-of-13 shooting and wemt 5-for-7 beyond the arc to lead the Bison.

May the Forte Be With You

• Chase Forte dropped a career-high 30 points in the Coyotes 85-80 win over St. Thomas Wednesday on Star Wars night in the SCSC.
• Forte nearly recorded his first double-double as a Yote with nine rebounds to go with four assists and three steals.
• He was 10-of-18 from the field and knocked down a season-high from beyond the arc going 4-of-7.

1-2 Punch

• Since Isaac Bruns was inserted into the starting lineup on Jan. 4 against Denver, the 1-2 punch of Bruns and Chase Forte has been among the best in the Summit League.
• Bruns has started each of the last 13 games and is averaging 16.8 points per game, up from his season average of 14.6 ppg.
• Bruns has six 20+ point games and 12 games with 10+ points in the last 13 contests.
• He has seven games with two or more 3-pointers.
• Over the last 13, Forte's scoring output has increased slightly at 18.9 ppg compared to his season's average of 16.8.
• He has six 20+ point games, 13 games with 10+ points and six games with 3+ steals.

100 games as a Coyote

• Max Burchill appeared in his 100th career game as a Coyote in Sunday's game against South Dakota State.
• The Sioux Falls, S.D. native has made 60 starts in his career.
• Burchill is averaging 4.7 points, 3.0 rebounds and 1.8 assists on the season.

Three Headed Monster

• The combination of Dre Bullock, Chase Forte and Isaac Bruns combined to score 131 of the Yotes 177 points in wins over Omaha and Denver.
• Bullock's scored 51 points in the two contests over the Mavs and Pios. Following a career-high 31 points against Omaha, Bullock scored 20 on 7-of-11 shooting against the Pioneers.
• Forte matched his career-high with 25 as he led the Yotes to a win over the Pios. He has had 10 steals over the past three contests.
• Bruns has scored in double-figures in 10 of the last 11 games.
• In the win over Kansas City Thursday, the trio of guards scored 57 of the Yotes 79 points.
• Both Bruns and Bullock scored 20+ points in back-to-back games against Kansas City and South Dakota State.

Forgot About Dre

• Dre Bullock erupted for a career high 31 points in a 91-87 win over Omaha and had a career-best six 3-pointers.
• Bullock made his second career start as a Yote in the contest and went 10-for-17 from the field with six rebounds and two steals.
• He is the first Coyote this season to eclipse the 30-point mark in a game and it's tied for the eighth most points scored by a Summit League player in a single game this season.
• Bullock was key in the Yotes 15-point second half comeback, scoring 13 points while going 3-for-3 from beyond the arc. He buried all three of those treys in the final seven minutes of the second half.
• Bullock earned his first Kwik Star Summit League Men's Basketball Peak Performer of the Week honor after the performance against the Mavs.
• Over the last seven games, Bullock has four games with 20+ points and is averaging 20.0 points per game during that stretch.

Scoring in Bunches

• South Dakota eclipsed the 100-point threshold for the third time this season in a 102-93 win over North Dakota.
• The Yotes are averaging 85.6 points per game, which ranks No. 4 in the NCAA.
• The three teams scoring at a higher clip than the Yotes include Alabama (90.8), Gonzaga (87.1) and Kentucky (85.7).
• Over the last 13 games, the Yotes have scored 90+ points in six games, 100+ twice and are averaging 86.9 points per contest.
• USD has scored 80+ points in all but eight games on the season.
• Part of the Coyotes offensive success has been its ability to reach the charity stripe. USD ranks No. 2 in free attempts per game (28.0) and No. 1 in free throw makes (19.9).
• The Yotes are 9-2 on the season when scoring 90+ points.

Protecting Home Court

• South Dakota is 13-2 at the Sanford Coyote Sports Center. The Yotes started the home slate at 10-0 which was the best start at home since opening its doors in the 2016-17 season.
• The Yotes previous best start in the SCSC was during the 2016-17 season when they started 8-0 and ended the year with a 13-1 mark at home.
• South Dakota has had five years with double-digits wins in the SCSC (2016-17, 2017-18, 2019-20 and 2021-22, 2024-25).
• In their ninth season in the SCSC, the Yotes hold a 94-30 (.758%) record at home.
• The last time the Yotes started 10-0 or better at home was in the 2008-09 season when they won 14 straight in the DakotaDome to begin the season.

Getting to the Line

• The Coyotes 51 free throw attempts against Denver (1/4/25) is tied for the seventh most in a game this season across the NCAA.
• It was also only the sixth Summit League conference game where a team shot 50+ free throws in a game.
• South Dakota has attempted 30+ free throws in 15 games on the year, most recently at Oral Roberts.
• The Yotes have attempted less than 20 free throws in just five games this season.
• The Yotes rank No. 2 in the NCAA in free throw attempts per game (28.0) and No. 1 in free throws made per game (19.9). USD ranks No. 1 in the Summit League in both categories.
• Chase Forte is one of the best in the country at getting down hill and drawing fouls. Forte is No. 5 in the NCAA in free throw attempts (218) and No. 28 in free throw makes (138).
• The Yotes have made and attempted the most free throws during the Summit League season (301-418) and are shooting .720 percent.
• USD has 15 games with 30+ free throw attempts and has twice shot 40+ in a single game.
• USD connected on 24-of-25 free throws against St. Thomas Wednesday night, which was the highest percentage the Yotes have shot in a single game this season (.960).

Home Sweet Home

• The Yotes are averaging 89.1 points per game at the SCSC and hold opponents to an average of 77.1 points.
• USD has scored 90+ points in eight home games and reached 100+ once (112 against Randall 11/25).
• The Yotes hold a .482 shooting percentage and have held teams to a .437 shooting percentage.
• USD averages 8.3 3-pointers made at home.
• On the road, the Yotes are averaging 81.9 points per game while giving up 90.1.
• USD has 189 assists to 148 turnovers (1.28 assist-to-turnover ratio) and has turned over visiting teams 223 times to 187 assists.
• Nine of the Coyotes wins at the SCSC have been by 10 or more points.
• At the SCSC, Chase Forte averages a team high 17.3 points, 3.9 assists and 2.3 steals per game while shooting .494 percent from the field. Forte also grabs 4.2 boards per game.
• Isaac Bruns adds 15.9 points per game on a .494 shooting percentage, while Dre Bullock averages 13.2 and Kaleb Stewart adds 8.5points per game.
• Bullock has knocked the most triples at home with 27 on a .403 clip from deep.
• USD has held the lead at halftime in 10 of 15 home games and the score has been tied at the intermission twice.
• On average, the Yotes score 42.5 points in the first half, while holding visiting teams to 34.7 points in the opening 20 minutes.

Bench Mob

• The Coyotes bolster the No. 14 ranked bench unit in the NCAA at 31.3 points per game.
• Isaac Bruns and Dre Bullock started the year off the bench for the Yotes but have since entered the starting lineup and are the second and third leading scorers on the team. 

Defensive Pressure

• Behind a rotation of players and a full court press, the Coyotes have forced on average 13.6 turnovers per game, which ranks No. 1 among Summit League teams.
• The Yotes set a season-high with 17 steals in the win over the Roos Thursday and turned KC over 21 times.
• The 21 turnovers by the Roos were the most in a game by a Division I opponent this season.
• USD has been one of the best teams in the country at valuing the basketball, ranking No. 19 in fewest turnovers per game (9.7). The Yotes also rank No. 17 in turnover margin (+3.9).
• The Yotes turn defense to offense as they average 16.5 points per game off opponents turnovers.
• Chase Forte paces the Summit League and ranks No. 26 in the NCAA with 57 steals on the season.
• South Dakota has held 12 opponents to a negative assist-to-turnover ratio.
• USD forced a season-high 24 turnovers in the win over Mount Marty.
• The Yotes have held a positive assist-to-turnover ratio in 17 games this season. USD had a season high 24 assists in its win over Randall.