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Jackrabbit men capture victory during Guardians Classic in Kentucky
Chris Solari
csolari@argusleader.com
Article Published: 11/15/05
LEXINGTON, Ky. - As much as the Division I move has changed sports at South Dakota State, one thing remains constant - the Jackrabbits still own Northern Colorado.
In a battle of old North Central Conference foes south of the Mason-Dixon Line, SDSU survived a turnover-filled, cold-shooting performance Monday night to defeat the Bears 61-59 in the consolation game of the Guardians Classic's Lexington Regional.
"We wanted to come out of this tournament with at least one win," Jacks coach Scott Nagy said. "As I told our kids, not many people get to say that they've won in Rupp Arena, and we can."
A night after falling to ninth-ranked Kentucky by 17 in their season opener, the Jackrabbits (1-1) picked up their second D-I victory of the last two seasons.
When a 3-point attempt by Northern Colorado's Matt Kline clanged off the side of the rim as time expired, it helped erase some of the painful memories from last year's 10-18 campaign, SDSU's first at the new level.
"It was a good experience as a young team. I think we grew a little tonight," said junior Ben Beran, who had 10 points and seven rebounds. "Last year, we couldn't have pulled out a victory like this, and I think it shows the talent we have."
SDSU owns a 37-19 all-time record against UNC, including wins in 19 of the last 21 meetings against the future Big Sky Conference school.
Relying on their defense for the second straight night, the Jackrabbits allowed the Bears to shoot just 36.4 percent from the field and just 3-of-18 from behind the 3-point line.
UNC (0-2) also committed 25 turnovers, which helped SDSU overcome 24 miscues of its own and a woeful 33.3 percent shooting effort.
All-Division I independent center Kirk Archibeque led the Bears with 17 points and 14 rebounds, including six offensive boards.
"We gave up 21 offensive rebounds," Nagy said, "and that's way too many."
After building a 12-point cushion early in the second half on an Andre Gilbert jumper, the Jackrabbits started to unravel. Northern Colorado used a 13-3 run, sparked by forward Dwayne Birden, to take a 48-47 lead midway into the period.
The game went back-and-forth from there, with the Jackrabbits taking the lead for good with just under four minutes left on a Beran fast-break layup.
Redshirt freshman Matt Cadwell hit two free throws with 11.7 seconds to play, but the Bears made it a one-point game on Sean Taibi's 3-pointer with 4.6 left.
Cadwell - who had all 11 of his points at the line - was fouled on the inbounds and made the second of two free throw attempts. Northern Colorado's Kline missed the 3-point shot from the right wing that would have won the game.
"The turnovers definitely hurt us, and we put them on the line way too many times," UNC coach Craig Rasmuson said.
SDSU started slowly again, going scoreless for more than five minutes as UNC scored six straight points. The Jackrabbits managed to climb back into the game behind sophomore forward Steve Holdren, who drained three 3-pointers after the early struggles.
SDSU's 14-2 run to close the half, capped by a Beran layup at the buzzer, gave the Jacks to a 35-26 lead.
Holdren, who led SDSU with 19 points, was constantly booed every time he touched the ball by early-arriving Kentucky fans. The boos were in response to his tackle of Wildcat forward Rekalin Sims a night earlier.
Having played two games in hostile Rupp Arena, the Jackrabbits must now turn their focus to NCAA runner-up Illinois. SDSU plays Friday at Assembly Hall in Champaign, Ill.
"Playing in these games, particularly (Sunday) in front of that crowd and on TV, will be great experience and will really calm us down when we go to Illinois," Nagy said. "We won't be so jittery."
Reach Chris Solari at 977-3923.
Jackrabbit men capture victory during Guardians Classic in Kentucky
Chris Solari
csolari@argusleader.com
Article Published: 11/15/05
LEXINGTON, Ky. - As much as the Division I move has changed sports at South Dakota State, one thing remains constant - the Jackrabbits still own Northern Colorado.
In a battle of old North Central Conference foes south of the Mason-Dixon Line, SDSU survived a turnover-filled, cold-shooting performance Monday night to defeat the Bears 61-59 in the consolation game of the Guardians Classic's Lexington Regional.
"We wanted to come out of this tournament with at least one win," Jacks coach Scott Nagy said. "As I told our kids, not many people get to say that they've won in Rupp Arena, and we can."
A night after falling to ninth-ranked Kentucky by 17 in their season opener, the Jackrabbits (1-1) picked up their second D-I victory of the last two seasons.
When a 3-point attempt by Northern Colorado's Matt Kline clanged off the side of the rim as time expired, it helped erase some of the painful memories from last year's 10-18 campaign, SDSU's first at the new level.
"It was a good experience as a young team. I think we grew a little tonight," said junior Ben Beran, who had 10 points and seven rebounds. "Last year, we couldn't have pulled out a victory like this, and I think it shows the talent we have."
SDSU owns a 37-19 all-time record against UNC, including wins in 19 of the last 21 meetings against the future Big Sky Conference school.
Relying on their defense for the second straight night, the Jackrabbits allowed the Bears to shoot just 36.4 percent from the field and just 3-of-18 from behind the 3-point line.
UNC (0-2) also committed 25 turnovers, which helped SDSU overcome 24 miscues of its own and a woeful 33.3 percent shooting effort.
All-Division I independent center Kirk Archibeque led the Bears with 17 points and 14 rebounds, including six offensive boards.
"We gave up 21 offensive rebounds," Nagy said, "and that's way too many."
After building a 12-point cushion early in the second half on an Andre Gilbert jumper, the Jackrabbits started to unravel. Northern Colorado used a 13-3 run, sparked by forward Dwayne Birden, to take a 48-47 lead midway into the period.
The game went back-and-forth from there, with the Jackrabbits taking the lead for good with just under four minutes left on a Beran fast-break layup.
Redshirt freshman Matt Cadwell hit two free throws with 11.7 seconds to play, but the Bears made it a one-point game on Sean Taibi's 3-pointer with 4.6 left.
Cadwell - who had all 11 of his points at the line - was fouled on the inbounds and made the second of two free throw attempts. Northern Colorado's Kline missed the 3-point shot from the right wing that would have won the game.
"The turnovers definitely hurt us, and we put them on the line way too many times," UNC coach Craig Rasmuson said.
SDSU started slowly again, going scoreless for more than five minutes as UNC scored six straight points. The Jackrabbits managed to climb back into the game behind sophomore forward Steve Holdren, who drained three 3-pointers after the early struggles.
SDSU's 14-2 run to close the half, capped by a Beran layup at the buzzer, gave the Jacks to a 35-26 lead.
Holdren, who led SDSU with 19 points, was constantly booed every time he touched the ball by early-arriving Kentucky fans. The boos were in response to his tackle of Wildcat forward Rekalin Sims a night earlier.
Having played two games in hostile Rupp Arena, the Jackrabbits must now turn their focus to NCAA runner-up Illinois. SDSU plays Friday at Assembly Hall in Champaign, Ill.
"Playing in these games, particularly (Sunday) in front of that crowd and on TV, will be great experience and will really calm us down when we go to Illinois," Nagy said. "We won't be so jittery."
Reach Chris Solari at 977-3923.