South Dakota State was handed their first loss of the season at home by Duke on Sunday.
The Blue Devils took the first lead of the game but could not get more than a one-possession advantage
until late in the first quarter, leading by five. A 7-0 scoring run in the second got them away from the Jacks as Duke led by eight at the halfway point. SDSU led one last time in the third before Duke pulled away to a 75-71 victory.
Brooklyn Meyer led SDSU in scoring with 25 points, going 9-of-13 on the court with six free throws. Paige Meyer put up 12 with a 26.6% shooting percentage and a team-high seven assists. Haleigh Timmer scored 11 with four assists and a rebound. Kallie Theisen, despite not scoring a single point, collected a season-high 12 rebounds. SDSU shot 45.6% on the court while going 50% for three.
Jadyn Donovan put up a double-double with 23 points and 15 rebounds, both team-highs. The sophomore went 11-of-17 on the court. Ashton Jackson scored 18 with four assists and Vanessa de Jesus put up 13 with a pair of rebounds and three assists. The Blue Devils shot 42.9% on the court while going 27.3% on three-pointers.
“[It was a] good opportunity for us there to play a great team at home,” head coach Aaron Johnston said. “We’ll look forward to going back to their place next year.”
SDSU drops to 3-1 on the season. Their next two games will be on the road in Laie, Hawaii against two undefeated teams as part of the Hawaii North Shore Showcase.
Georgia Tech
SDSU’s first opponent will be Georgia Tech this weekend, coming off a win over Georgia.
Dani Carnegie is the Yellow Jackets leading scorer, with 66 points off 24 field goals this season. She also shares the team lead in steals with Kara Dunn, who is their best rebounder with 34 on the year. Kayla Blackshear is the team’s best shooter, having a .591 shooting percentage.
The Yellow Jackets have scored 80.8 points per game, placing them ninth in the ACC, while they have allowed 51.5 points per game, good for third in the conference.
Oregon
Oregon enters the showcase in a five-way tie for first place in the Big Ten Conference. They will play Georgia Tech on Monday before facing off against SDSU the next day.
Deja Kelly is the Ducks leading scorer with 58 points, averaging 11.6 per game. She has also made the most field goals on the team this season while also leading in rebounds with 34; all but four of those were on defense. Kelly also has the most assists on the team with 22. Elia Mevius has connected on nine three-pointers this season, having the best three-point percentage on the team with at least ten attempts. She shares the team lead in steals with eight.
Oregon has the third-lowest scoring offense in the Big Ten, putting up just 76.2 points a game. Their defense has fared slightly better through five games, allowing 59.4 points a contest.
Tip-off against Georgia Tech is Saturday at 7 p.m., while the Oregon game will tip-off next Tuesday at 6 p.m. Coverage for both games will be available on the Jackrabbit Sports Network.
