The Jackrabbits weren’t able to take their first nonconference game of the season against the Zips. With the 81-75 score, the University of Akron walked out of Frost Arena with the win Monday night.

Though handed a loss, this game showed great strength for the Jacks. Star guard Zeke Mayo led the Jacks and the Zips with a season-high 28-point night. Mayo excelled from the free throw line, shooting five out of 6 and went 10 and 19 on field goals but lacked from the arc, shooting just over 27% from three.

Mayo and teammate Charlie Easley had light hands the whole night. SDSU tallied eight total steals, with four from Mayo and four from Easley.

Easley, a 6’2 guard led the Jackrabbits in rebounding, pulling in seven of State’s 26. Though shooting under 30% on field goals for the day, Easley was a perfect 2-2 from beyond the arc and a clutch 4-4 from the foul line.

Forward William Kyle III has been a monster in the paint for the Jacks this year. Just in his second season, Kyle III went for 16 points throughout the game, shooting an excellent 8-11 while owning the highlight reel with multiple ally-oop dunks on Monday.

“I think you guys’ kind of saw the improvement he’s [Kyle III] shown from last year already,” said SDSU head coach Eric Henderson. “He’s so much stronger, he needs to impact the glass a little bit more and he’ll certainly do that.”

Luke Appel went 10-3-2 on the night with all three rebounds being on the defensive side.

The Zips outrounded the Jacks by 10 throughout the game, thanks to Enrique Freeman. The 6’7 forward finished the night with 14 boards, 13 points and five assists, leading his team in assists and rebounds.

Mikal Dawson came off the bench for Akron and showed why tight coverage is needed when he has the ball. The Senior shot 6-11 on field goals, while going 50% on three points and 75% from the foul line, adding up to 19 points, the most on the team.

Hunter Sammy and Greg Tribble combined for 27 points while both getting an assist as well.

Akron’s bench outscored South Dakota State 26-5 on the night. State’s bench points came from Nate Barnhart (two points) and Mathew Mors (three points).

Dakota Wesleyan

After their loss, the Jacks are set to take on Dakota Wesleyan, which is slated for today at 7 p.m. in Frost Arena.

Unlike SDSU, Dakota Wesleyan won their last outing 88-79, narrowly escaping Valley City State thanks to an impressive 11-2 overtime run.

The Tigers are currently 3-0 and have averaged over 80 points a game this season. DWU plays small ball basketball, with four guards in their starting lineup and a forward.

Freshman guard Randy Rosenquist Jr. averages 17.3 points per game while facilitating for his team, dishing out over seven assists per matchup this season.

Juniors Jakob Dobney and Kallan Herman both have dropped 14.7 points each game. Dobney has 19 rebounds this season, second most on the team behind Blaze Lubbers who has pulled in 20. Both Lubbers and Dobney have three blocks each this season.

This Tiger defense has been something to keep your eye on. In just three games, they have forced 46 turnovers while stealing the ball 21 times and blocking 17 shots.

The Jacks must be able to contain Rosenquist Jr. and the ball movement on theTigers offense. DWU has a total of 51 assists on the season.

Kansas State

After Wednesday’s game, The South Dakota State Jackrabbits will set their sights on a more dangerous opponent in the Kansas State Wildcats. Tipoff is slated for Nov. 13 at 7 p.m. at the Bramlage Coliseum.

The Wildcats suffered a loss to USC in their first game of the season 82-69. After losing Keyontae Johnson to the NBA, Tylor Perry has stepped up big for the Cats.

In their first game of the season, Perry dropped 22 points, six boards and six assists. The fifth year also pick pocketed the ball four times from opponents.

6’9 wing David N’Guessan, a Virginia Tech transfer pulled down a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds.

Kansas State looked rusty shooting the ball the whole game, making 22 of 71 attempted field goals and 8 of 33 three points.

The Wildcats lacked defending in the paint in their first game, allowing 50 points in the paint (60.9% of total points) to their 28 paint points (40.5% of total points).

The depth of the K-State bench runs deep. Four nonstarters scored a total of 16 points during the game with Will McNair Jr. scoring eight points in just nine minutes, missing only one of his five field goals.