For the reason that first recreation, the Summit League common season title race appeared extensive open. The potential of any variety of first-time champions swirled all through, whether or not it was St. Thomas or Denver early, North Dakota within the meat of the convention season and even hard-charging Kansas Metropolis down the stretch.
The Summit race was extensive open. Till it wasn’t.
Ultimately, probably the most anticipated factor occurred. South Dakota State, the preseason favourite, took residence the title and the highest seed within the upcoming league match, and will that basically have come as a shock?
Having simply wrapped up his fifth common season in cost, Eric Henderson has finished a exceptional job cementing the Jackrabbits because the premier program within the Summit.
When you think about what SDSU has been in its Division I tenure, you definitely must peel the onion again to Scott Nagy and Nate Wolters, T.J. Otzelberger and Mike Daum (the place Henderson was on employees), however that won’t give the credit score to what Henderson’s groups have achieved.
This yr’s title is this system’s second outright common season championship in Henderson’s tenure, together with the historic, 18-0 offensive machine in 2021-22. It’s additionally the fourth time the Jackrabbits have earned not less than a share of the highest spot, and if Zeke Mayo is called Summit Participant of the Yr, as is probably going, he’ll be part of Douglas Wilson and Baylor Scheierman as a 3rd Jackrabbit to assert that award in that span.
Regardless of all of it, this yr might effectively have been Henderson’s best work.
The Jackrabbits had been an comprehensible preseason favourite, with loads of continuity surrounding a rising star in Mayo, however there have been patches all year long the place they seemed weak.
SDSU went into its Christmas break at 6-7 after a pair of losses on the Don Haskins Solar Bowl Invitational in El Paso, Texas, together with what – arguably – can be their worst lack of the season, a 19-point defeat in opposition to Norfolk State. As they opened the league season in opposition to North Dakota on New Yr’s Eve, Mayo was on the bench, someplace he hadn’t been since cracking the beginning lineup halfway via his freshman season in 2021-22.
SDSU, nonetheless, bounced again. The staff overcame a gradual begin to beat the Combating Hawks with Mayo scoring 25 factors and grabbing seven rebounds. Regardless of the instructing second was, it labored.
“We have now some non-negotiables inside our program,” Henderson mentioned after the sport. “I used to be actually proud how [Mayo] responded. It was one thing I felt I wanted to do and did it and Zeke responded effectively.”
The junior regained his spot within the beginning lineup and didn’t look again, posting one other unimaginable season because the Jackrabbits high choice (19.0 ppg, 5.9 rpg, 3.6 apg). Because the season went on, he helped SDSU reply to challenges the league threw at them.
A tense early season recreation at St. Thomas? Mayo drilled a recreation winner. A 2-3 stretch in mid-February to tighten the league standings? SDSU responded with a five-game successful streak to lock up the league title.
The cherry on high of that successful streak was the win final Thursday at UND, the place Mayo’s 26 factors helped the Jackrabbits break open a decent recreation late the place every little thing was on the road. Had the Combating Hawks received, they’d’ve drawn even with SDSU and introduced the title race to the season’s closing day. As an alternative, SDSU took the air – and drama – out of the balloon.
After their first assembly in December, when issues weren’t trying as rosy, Mayo had talked about the place the staff was mentally.
“[We] by no means get too excessive or get too low,” he mentioned. “We perceive that everybody on this staff is purchased in proper now.”
Henderson echoed that in that very same post-game press convention, speaking about how he had challenged the gamers to be extra constant and challenged himself to do a greater job maintaining the staff accountable.
“How do you be sure you’re enjoying linked each recreation?” he mentioned. “Properly, you do it day-after-day, you do it at college, you do it at residence, you do it at observe, you come and get additional exercises, you come and convey an additional teammate with you and do it with a optimistic perspective.”
A full convention slate later, that consistency has led to extra {hardware} in Brookings. This was not the Baylor Scheierman-led offensive juggernaut that ran via the league two years in the past, nor was it a staff that got here considerably out-of-nowhere to problem on the high of the convention throughout Henderson’s first season.
However it’s a staff that has performed with SDSU’s signature offensive effectivity and, for probably the most half, is distinct from that undefeated champion in 2021-22.
Mayo, Charlie Easley and Matt Mims had been essential components of that staff, however not within the main roles they’re in now. The identical might be mentioned for Luke Appel, who whereas he had large moments two years in the past, is coming off an harm that worn out his 2022-23 season. Gamers just like the explosive William Kyle III or glue man Kalen Garry? They weren’t but in blue and yellow throughout that season.
Churning over a program like that could be the final word signal of consistency in a season that SDSU was striving – and arrived at – simply that. That twinkle within the league’s eye of being extensive open has not gone away. There are very plausible universes the place, say, the Roos’ protection carries them to a first-ever NCAA Event bid or B.J. Omot and Tyree Ihenacho silence the Jackrabbit crowd in Sioux Falls.
However the Jackrabbits are the favorites, and that simply appears inevitable.