North Dakota State also celebrated Senior Night, Wednesday.
The start of the first half set the theme for this game, as neither team worked out to a big lead. After an Isaac Bruns made jumper, South Dakota would work out to an 18-11 lead, the first half’s biggest difference. The Bison would respond with a 9-2 run, to take the lead back early at 21-20. Jacari White would contribute six points in that stretch.
This contest would remain a two-possession game the remainder of the first half. After a couple Tajavis Miller free-throw shots, Darik Dissette would give the Bison the lead with a lay-up. Shortly after Andy Stefonowicz would score a layup of his own giving NDSU a 41-37 lead heading into halftime.
North Dakota State would lead to start the second half for a large period of time. After knocking down both of his free throws, Tajavis Miller would work the Bison lead out to nine points, with 11 minutes left to play. Immediately after finding themselves down nine, the Coyotes would rattle off a 10-0 run, that spanned just over three minutes of game time, to give South Dakota a 63-62 lead.
The rest of the second half was a chaotic one, as there were nine lead changes in the next six minutes of game time. With a 1:39 left on the game clock, Jacari White would hit a clutch “and-one” jump shot over two defenders, converting the free throw, to give NDSU the lead back, at 77-74.
The Coyotes would get it within one point again, but Tajavis Miller would hit a jumper to give the Bison a three-point lead. Darik Dissette would grab his 16 th rebound of the night, after a South Dakota miss, securing an 82-78 win for the North Dakota State.
Darik Dissette had a career night in the Wednesday Victory, the sophomore guard grabbed his first career double-double, scoring 16 points and grabbing 13 rebounds. Jacari White also was spectacular on senior night, scoring 20 points.
The Bison end their regular season at 21-10, going 10-6 in a tough Summit League. NDSU now heads into the Summit League tournament as the fourth seed. They will have a rematch of this game, as they will be playing the fifth seed USD Coyotes, Friday March 7th, at the Denny Sanford Premier Center, in Sioux Falls.
