CBB Review hands out awards for each conference tournament in 2024. Up next: The Summit League Tournament.
The Summit League Tournament has come and gone, but a familiar face ended up clinching the automatic bid. The South Dakota State Jackrabbits are going dancing for the fifth time in the past eight postseasons after defeating Denver and Tommy Bruner in the final, 76-68.
The Summit League preview had St. Thomas defeating North Dakota in the final, and if I didn’t have to, I wouldn’t plug that here, because that was a very rough prediction. Zeke Mayo, Luke Appel, William Kyle III, really the whole South Dakota State roster played quality basketball over three games to take home the Summit crown. This isn’t the Daum-led superteams that Brookings enjoyed in the late 2010s, but this is a very good group of players and honestly more fun to watch.
CBB Review Summit League Tournament Most Outstanding Player
William Kyle III, South Dakota State
The Bellevue, Nebraska native started off the title game with a high-flying dunk and didn’t let up from there. It set the tone for the rest of the game, and Kyle III ended up with a 15-point, 11-rebound double-double in the biggest game of the season for the Jackrabbits.
He was one rebound short of a double-double in the quarterfinals against Oral Roberts, and even in his lowest-scoring outing (eight points) in the semifinal against St. Thomas, he shot 4-4 from the floor.
On the week, he ended up with a 63.0 FG% and was pivotal in getting these Jackrabbits back to the dance. Does this team make March Madness without Kyle III? It’s not out of the question to say no. He’s very valuable to this team, and a top-notch athlete.
CBB Review All-Summit League Tournament First Team
- G: Tommy Bruner, Denver – 3 games played (18.7 PPG, 3.3 RPG, 2.7 APG, 1.3 SPG)
- G: Zeke Mayo, South Dakota State – 3 games played (14.0 PPG, 4.7 RPG, 2.7 APG, 47.1 3P%)
- F: Frankie Fidler, Ohama – 2 games played (30.5 PPG, 9.0 RPG, 1.5 APG, 2.0 SPG, 54.5 2P%)
- G: Luke Appel, South Dakota State – 3 games played (14.7 PPG, 5.3 RPG, 4.3 APG, 60.7 FG%)
- G: William Kyle III, South Dakota State – 3 games played (13.0 PPG, 8.0 RPG, 1.0 APG, 63.0 FG%)
South Dakota State’s NCAA Tournament Prediction
Round of 64
I will say that South Dakota State has a much higher chance of beating a 1-2 seed than a lot of their prospective counterparts, and I would predict that too, but I don’t feel like getting shredded by the masses online. Shameless plug, but I saw Oral Roberts beating Ohio State in 2020 from miles away. This Jackrabbit team reminds me a lot of that team, even though they don’t have a Max Ambas-type star. (Who can say that though, truly?) They’re very good from the perimeter and elite from inside the arc.
Iowa State’s defense could make it a challenging matchup, but if they can just catch fire for 40 minutes against a 1-2 seed, they could very well bust some brackets, mine included probably. Just don’t say I didn’t warn you.
William Kyle III is an athlete with a capital A, (Athlete!) Luke Appel has the size and can hit from deep if needed, and Zeke Mayo is, and has been, that dude. I’m not going to put “Round of 32” in bold, and I typically stay away from Summit League upsets in the tourney, but this is a sneaky good team that’s peaking at the right time.