• Recap
• Bleachers
• Game Tracker

SDSU downs NDSU for second straight Summit League title

Mar 13, 2013 - 4:32 AM Sioux Falls, SD (Sports Network) - Nate Wolters scored a game-high 27 points to go along with six rebounds, six assists and four steals as South Dakota State defeated rival North Dakota State, 73-67, to earn its second straight Summit League title.

Jordan Dykstra had 18 points and seven boards for the Jackrabbits (25-9), who have punched consecutive tickets to "The Big Dance" and have won four straight games. Tony Fiegen donated 12 points in the victory.

Taylor Braun scored 23 points to pace North Dakota State (24-9) which was looking to win its first Summit League title since 2009.

It was the 207th all-time meeting between the border sharing rivals.

South Dakota State scored the first seven points of the second half to grab some early momentum and a 36-25 lead. The Jackrabbits continued to hold their edge as Dykstra had a three-point play at the 11:45 mark which made it 48-36.

Bruan and Mike Felt then hit back-to-back triples to bring the Bison with six points, 48-42, at the midway point.

Felt hit another trey minutes later during a 7-2 surge which saw NDSU close to the gap to two points, but Wolters and Dykstra with their own pair of threes -- in between a Bruan lay-in to grow the SDSU lead to 60-54 with 4 1/2 minutes to play.

The Jackrabbits secured the victory by connecting on 9-of-10 from the charity stripe over the final 2:12, as Wolters, the Summit League's Player of the Year, sank two free throws before SDSU fans stormed the court.

North Dakota State took an early 7-3 lead before SDSU came back with a 16-4 surge with 7:23 remaining on Wolters jumper to make it 19-11.

The Jackrabbits led at the break, 29-25.

Game Notes

The 'Jacks and Bison last played for a conference title on Feb. 23, 1980, as SDSU came away with a 79-75 victory to win the North Central Conference Tournament title ... Not only has South Dakota State earned back-to-back Summit League titles, but it's also the only two NCAA appearances in program history ... North Dakota State holds a 109-98 edge in the storied all-time series.