Defensive efficiency was the name of the game Thursday night when South Dakota State defeated longtime rivals North Dakota State 87-69.

On the defensive side, SDSU forced 18 Bison turnovers and out-rebounded NDSU 35 to 32.

SDSU also stayed active along the 3-point line as they were able to hold the Bison to a below average 32.3 percent from behind the line.

“We want to do a better job trying to attack those closeouts a little bit more to take the 3-point shot away.” said coach Otzelberger after being asked about the teams 3-point defense. “It is something we have been working on and we need to continue to improve at.”

With the defense on lock down the Jacks offense was able to shine. The Jacks were able to shot above 60 percent from the field including shooting 63.6 percent from the 3-point line.

Daum had his third consecutive game in which he scored at least 30 points. Daum’s offensive effort lifted him past J.J. Reddick in the all-time scoring list landing at 18^th all-time.

“J.J. Reddick was one of my favorite Duke players. I remember watching him. That man could shoot the ball.” Daum said with a smile. “I mean it’s very cool, maybe when I am older, I will look back on it and maybe be able to meet J.J. someday and tell him about it.”

Daum finished with 30 points and 17 rebounds.

David Jenkins also had a fruitful night from the floor scoring 25 points on 50 percent shooting.

Meanwhile, Tevin King and Alex Arians racked up assists with seven and six assists respectively, assisting the team reach a total of 20 assists on the night.

The Jacks will host the University of Omaha Mavericks in their next game to decide who takes the top spot in the Summit League. That will be the second game of a doubleheader with the Women’s team tipping off at 2 p.m. and the Men tipping off at 4:15 p.m. in Frost Arena.