Jackrabbits dominate fourth quarter to beat Bison for title

For the third time this season, the Jackrabbits dominated the final minutes and this time it was worth a Summit championship and the automatic berth to the NCAA Division I tournament. The 67-54 victory was their 11th tourney title.

It was NDSU’s first trip to a championship game since joining the conference in 2008. They discovered what other teams have discovered on Tuesday afternoons in March: It’s a tough crowd to beat, also.

“It’s a great environment to play in,” said Bison guard Elle Evans. “For women’s basketball, it’s great in general. I’m so happy that it’s becoming like this. Obviously sad we didn’t get the win today but we put up a good fight.”

NDSU took the fight midway into the fourth quarter. The Jacks had the look of pulling away when the Bison responded, getting a 3-pointer from Heaven Hamling to get within 47-46. But two straight NDSU turnovers helped the Jacks take a six-point lead with the crowd well into it.

Then they did pull away. Three straight field goals from senior Tori Nelson, one a 3-pointer, made it 59-46. Two SDSU free throws capped 14 straight points.

“That’s where we need to get some more experience,” said NDSU head coach Jory Collins. “Where we can handle those situations a little better because the separation is not what it ended up being 13. It’s when it gets to six or seven and then you feel like it’s life or death on the next basket and you’re not going to be able to get back into it.”

It was a similar outcome two weeks ago in Brookings when the Bison were within three with four minutes left. SDSU won by 15 points. The Jackrabbits won down the stretch earlier this season in Fargo.

“They’re big and strong,” Collins said. “Over the course of time, I think that’s a big part of why we didn’t finish well. I just think we didn’t finish enough baskets through contact and played physical enough around the rim to score enough points.”

SDSU overcame 13 first-half turnovers holding NDSU to 21 of 64 field goals. The Bison had their chances to expand a lead in the first two quarters and it ultimately was costly with another late Jackrabbit scoring splurge when the outcome was on the line.

“I think we just trust each other to make plays and are confident in each other,” Nelson said. "It was tough to buy some baskets early but I think everyone stepped up, moved the ball and got the ball to the open person when we needed to."

It was a battle for the Bison from the start beginning with the mental side of things. The Jackrabbits came in with a 20-game winning streak with their last defeat Dec. 21 at 21st-ranked Creighton. They finished the Summit regular season with 47 straight wins; last losing in 2022 at the University of South Dakota.

The last conference team to beat the Jacks other than USD was the University in Denver back in 2020. There aren’t any mountains in Sioux Falls, but those eye-popping facts certainly qualify in the hills of basketball.

NDSU last beat the Jacks in 2015 when the Bison played at Scheels Arena while their facility was being renovated. Guard Brooke Lemar had 30 points and it stood to reason that if the Bison were going to get past SDSU on Tuesday, they needed somebody to turn in a similar night.

It didn’t happen. They shot 33%. Hamling and Evans, the two leading scorers, were held to 11 of 36 field goals.

The Bison went scoreless for almost eight minutes of the second quarter, yet trailed 22-20 at halftime when Hamling banked in a 3-pointer at the buzzer. Two freshmen picked up the Bison offensive slack in the third quarter. Forward Abby Krzewinski had back-to-back inside hoops. Forward Avery Koenen had a pair of three-point plays after two offensive rebounds.

It kept the Bison even with the Jacks before SDSU ripped off seven straight to take a 42-39 lead heading to the fourth quarter. The Bison couldn’t solve the Jacks, who are now 40-4 against NDSU since the Division I era started in 2004-05.

For the first time, however, the gap at least appears to be closing. NDSU finished 21-11 and will await word if they get selected to the Women’s Basketball Invitational Tournament.

“Impressed with what they’ve done and their trajectory,” said SDSU head coach Aaron Johnston. "They're playing at a high level so that was a good win for our group. There was not a lot of easy, even in this game. But I felt like we were always within reach, always in a place where we could go forward."

NDSU 10 20 39 54

SDSU 11 22 42 67

NDSU (21-11): Draper 1-4 2-2 4, H. Hamling 5-18 4-6 16, Evans 6-18 0-0 13, Schulte 3-9 0-0 6, Krzewinski 3-6 0-0 6, Koenen 3-6 2-2 8, Simon 0-2 1-2 1, Graham 0-0 0-0 0, Mackenzie 0-1 0-0 0, T. Hamling 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 21-64 9-12 54.

SDSU (27-5): Nelson 4-9 0-0 9, Byom 4-5 1-1 11, B. Meyer 6-12 3-3 15, Mathiowetz 3-9 4-4 12, P. Meyer 5-11 5-8 18, Hopp 1-4 0-0 2, Colbeck 0-2 0-0 0. Totals: 23-52 13-16 67.

Total fouls: NDSU 19, SDSU 10. Fouled out: none. Rebounds: NDSU 33 (H. Hamling 6); SDSU 38 (Byom 9). 3-point goals: NDSU 3-18 (Draper 0-1, H. Hamling 2-9, Evans 1-5, Koenen 0-1, Simon 0-2); SDSU (Nelson 1-3, Byom 2-2, Mathiowetz 2-4, P. Meyer 3-5, Hopp 0-1). Assists: NDSU 11 (Evans 4); SDSU 15 (P. Meyer 5). Turnovers: NDSU 11 (Evans 4); SDSU 16 (P. Meyer, B. Meyer 4).