The 2021–22 Summit League Conference men's basketball season started non-conference play on November 9, 2021, and began conference play on December 20, 2021. The regular season ended on February 26, 2022, setting up the 2022 Summit League men's basketball tournament from March 5 to March 8.
South Dakota State was the regular season champion, finishing with a perfect 18-0 conference record for the first time in conference and team history. The Jacks would go on to win the Summit League tournament as well, beating North Dakota State to reach their first NCAA tournament berth in four years.
| 2021-22 Summit League men's basketball season | |
|---|---|
 | |
| League | NCAA Division I |
| Sport | Basketball |
| Number of teams | 10 |
| Regular Season | |
| Regular season champion | South Dakota State |
| Season MVP | Baylor Scheierman, South Dakota State |
| Summit League tournament | |
| Champions | South Dakota State |
| Runners-up | North Dakota State |
| Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | W | L | PCT | W | L | PCT | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| South Dakota State † | 18 | – | 0 | 1.000 | 30 | – | 5 | .857 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| North Dakota State | 13 | – | 5 | .722 | 23 | – | 10 | .697 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Kansas City | 12 | – | 6 | .667 | 19 | – | 12 | .613 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Oral Roberts | 12 | – | 6 | .667 | 19 | – | 12 | .613 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| South Dakota | 11 | – | 7 | .611 | 19 | – | 12 | .613 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Western Illinois | 7 | – | 11 | .389 | 16 | – | 16 | .500 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Denver | 7 | – | 11 | .389 | 11 | – | 21 | .344 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| St. Thomas* | 4 | – | 14 | .222 | 10 | – | 20 | .333 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Omaha | 4 | – | 14 | .222 | 5 | – | 25 | .167 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| North Dakota | 2 | – | 16 | .111 | 6 | – | 25 | .194 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| * Ineligible for the 2022 NCAA tournament due to transition from Division III | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| † 2022 Summit League tournament winner | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Conference Changes edit
Due to the addition of St. Thomas (MN), the conference schedule was expanded to 18 games. Each team played every team twice, once at home and once on the road.
Head Coaches edit
Coaching Changes edit
Denver hired Jeff Wulbrun after Rodney Billups was let go.
Coaches edit
| Team | Head Coach | Previous Job | Years At School | Record at School | Summit League Record | Summit League Titles | NCAA Tournaments | NCAA Sweet 16's |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Denver | Jeff Wulbrun | Stanford (Assistant) | 1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Kansas City | Billy Donlon | Northwestern (Assistant) | 3 | 27-27 | 7-7 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Omaha | Derrin Hansen | Omaha (Assistant) | 17 | 246-233* | 64-74 | 0 | 0** | 0*** |
| North Dakota | Paul Sather | Northern State (Assistant) | 3 | 24-35 | 15-17 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| North Dakota State | David Richman | North Dakota State (Assistant) | 8 | 136-87 | 69-41 | 3 | 2 | 0 |
| Oral Roberts | Paul Mills | Baylor (Assistant) | 5 | 57-66 | 31-30 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| St. Thomas | John Tauer | St. Thomas (Assistant) | 11 | 224-57^ | 0-0 | 0 | 0^^ | 0^^^ |
| South Dakota | Todd Lee | Grand Canyon (Assistant) | 4 | 47-40 | 28-19 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| South Dakota State | Eric Henderson | South Dakota State (Assistant) | 3 | 38-17 | 22-6 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Western Illinois | Rob Jeter | Minnesota (Assistant) | 2 | 7-15 | 5-9 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Notes:
- Year at school includes 2021–22 season.
- Overall and Summit League records are from the time at current school and are through the end of the 2020–21 season.
- NCAA Tournament appearances are from the time at current school only.
*110 Wins and 68 Losses at Division II level
**2 NCAA Division II Tournaments
***1 NCAA Division II Sweet 16's and 1 NCAA Division II Elite 8
^All wins and losses at Division III level
^^8 NCAA Division III Tournaments
^^^4 NCAA Division III Sweet 16, 2 NCAA Division III Final Fours, and 1 NCAA Division III National Championship
Preseason Awards edit
The Preseason Summit League men's basketball polls was released on October 12, 2021.[1]
Preseason men's basketball polls edit
First Place Votes in Parentheses
- South Dakota State (23) - 636
- North Dakota State (7) - 606
- Oral Roberts (6) - 545
- South Dakota - 480
- Western Illinois - 356
- Kansas City - 341
- North Dakota - 279
- Omaha - 255
- Denver - 217
- St. Thomas 120
Preseason Honors edit
| Honor | Recipient |
|---|---|
| Preseason Player of the Year | Max Abmas, Oral Roberts |
| Preseason All-Summit League First Team | Max Abmas, Oral Roberts |
| Josiah Allick, Kansas City | |
| Sam Griesel, North Dakota State | |
| Rocky Kreuser, North Dakota State | |
| Baylor Scheierman, South Dakota State | |
| Douglas Wilson, South Dakota State | |
| Preseason All-Summit League Second Team | Will Carius, Western Illinois |
| Tyree Eady, North Dakota State | |
| Noah Freidel, South Dakota State | |
| Xavier Fuller, South Dakota | |
| Tasos Kamateros, South Dakota |
Regular season edit
Conference standings edit
| Conference | Overall | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | Team | Record | Perecent | Record | Percent | Tiebreaker |
| 1 | South Dakota State | 18–0 | 1.000 | 30–5 | .857 | |
| 2 | North Dakota State | 13–5 | .722 | 23–10 | .697 | |
| 3 | Kansas City | 12–6 | .667 | 19–12 | .613 | |
| 4 | Oral Roberts | 12–6 | .667 | 19–12 | .613 | |
| 5 | South Dakota | 11–7 | .611 | 19–12 | .613 | |
| 6 | Western Illinois | 7–11 | .389 | 16–16 | .500 | |
| 7 | Denver | 7–11 | .389 | 11–21 | .344 | |
| 8 | St. Thomas | 4–14 | .222 | 10–20 | .333 | |
| 9 | Omaha | 4–14 | .222 | 5–25 | .167 | |
| 10 | North Dakota | 2–16 | .111 | 6–25 | .194 | |
Conference Matrix edit
| Denver | Kansas City | Omaha | North Dakota | North Dakota State | Oral Roberts | St. Thomas | South Dakota | South Dakota State | Western Illinois | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| vs. Denver | – | 1-1 | 1-1 | 0-2 | 2-0 | 2-0 | 0-2 | 2-0 | 2-0 | 1-1 |
| vs. Kansas City | 1-1 | – | 1-1 | 0-2 | 0-2 | 2-0 | 0-2 | 0-2 | 2-0 | 2-0 |
| vs. Omaha | 1-1 | 1-1 | – | 1-1 | 2-0 | 2-0 | 2-0 | 2-0 | 2-0 | 1-1 |
| vs. North Dakota | 2-0 | 2-0 | 1-1 | – | 2-0 | 2-0 | 1-1 | 2-0 | 2-0 | 2-0 |
| vs. North Dakota State | 0-2 | 2-0 | 0-2 | 0-2 | – | 0-2 | 0-2 | 0-2 | 2-0 | 1-1 |
| vs. Oral Roberts | 0-2 | 0-2 | 0-2 | 0-2 | 2-0 | – | 0-2 | 1-1 | 2-0 | 1-1 |
| vs. St. Thomas | 2-0 | 2-0 | 0-2 | 1-1 | 2-0 | 2-0 | – | 2-0 | 2-0 | 1-1 |
| vs. South Dakota | 0-2 | 2-0 | 0-2 | 0-2 | 2-0 | 1-1 | 0-2 | – | 2-0 | 0-2 |
| vs. South Dakota State | 0-2 | 0-2 | 0-2 | 0-2 | 0-2 | 0-2 | 0-2 | 0-2 | – | 0-2 |
| vs. Western Illinois | 1-1 | 2-0 | 1-1 | 0-2 | 1-1 | 1-1 | 1-1 | 2-0 | 1-0 | – |
Players of the Week edit
| Week[2] | Player(s) of the Week | School |
|---|---|---|
| Nov. 15 | Baylor Scheierman | South Dakota State |
| Nov. 22 | Evan Gilyard II | Kansas City |
| Nov. 29 | Noah Freidel | South Dakota State (2) |
| Dec. 6 | Colton Sandage | Western Illinois |
| Dec. 13 | Baylor Scheierman (2) | South Dakota State (3) |
| Dec. 20 | Francis Lacis | Oral Roberts |
| Dec. 27 | Trent Massner | Western Illinois (2) |
| Jan. 3 | Max Abmas | Oral Roberts (2) |
| Jan. 10 | Max Abmas (2) | Oral Roberts (3) |
| Jan. 17 | Trent Massner (2) | Western Illinois (3) |
| Jan. 24 | Tevin Smith | Denver |
| Jan. 31 | Max Abmas (3) | Oral Roberts (3) |
| Feb. 7 | Marvin Nesbitt Jr. Baylor Scheierman (3) |
Kansas City (2) South Dakota State (4) |
| Feb. 14 | Sam Griesel | North Dakota State |
| Feb. 21 | Evan Gilyard II (2) | Kansas City (3) |
| Feb. 28 | Luke Appel | South Dakota State (5) |
Records against other conferences edit
| Power 7 Conferences | Record | Power 7 Conferences | Record |
|---|---|---|---|
| ACC | None | American | 1-0 |
| Big East | 0-2 | Big Ten | 1-5 |
| Big 12 | 0-5 | Pac-12 | 1-2 |
| SEC | 1-1 | Power 7 Total | 4-15 |
| Other Division I Conferences | Record | Other Division I Conferences | Record |
| Atlantic 10 | 1-1 | ASUN | 1-1 |
| America East | None | Big Sky | 5-7 |
| Big South | None | Big West | 3-0 |
| Colonial | None | Conference USA | 0-3 |
| Horizon League | 3-2 | Ivy League | None |
| MAAC | 1-0 | MAC | 3-0 |
| MEAC | None | MVC | 2-5 |
| MWC | 2-8 | NEC | 1-0 |
| OVC | 3-4 | Patriot League | None |
| SoCon | None | Southland | 2-2 |
| SWAC | 2-0 | Sun Belt | 3-2 |
| WAC | 2-6 | WCC | 2-0 |
| Other Division I Total | 40-41 | ||
| NCAA Division I Total | 40-56 | ||
| NCAA Division II Total | 2-0 | ||
| NCAA Division III Total | 7-0 | ||
| NAIA Total | 9-1 | ||
| NCCAA Total | 4-0 | ||
| Total Non-Conference Record | 62-57 | ||
Points scored edit
| Team | For | Against | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Denver | 2257 | 2380 | -123 |
| Kansas City | 2311 | 2085 | +226 |
| North Dakota | 2178 | 2444 | -266 |
| North Dakota State | 2469 | 2267 | +202 |
| Omaha | 2088 | 2505 | -417 |
| Oral Roberts | 2582 | 2306 | +276 |
| St. Thomas | 2241 | 2260 | -19 |
| South Dakota | 2329 | 2198 | +131 |
| South Dakota State | 3005 | 2561 | +444 |
| Western Illinois | 2493 | 2470 | +23 |
Through March 8, 2022[3]
Home attendance edit
| Team | Arena | Capacity | Total Games | Average Attendance | Attendance High | Total Attendance | % of Capacity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Denver | Hamilton Gymnasium | 2,500 | 13 | 792 | 1,607 Nov. 7 vs. Regis |
10,305 | 31.7% |
| Kansas City | Swinney Recreation Center | 1,500 | 13† | 749 | 1,558 Feb. 26 vs. South Dakota St |
9,738 | 50.0% |
| North Dakota | Betty Engelstad Sioux Center | 3,300 | 15 | 1,380 | 2,541 Feb. 26 vs. North Dakota St |
20,712 | 41.8% |
| North Dakota State | Scheels Center | 5,460 | 15 | 1,913 | 3,510 Dec. 22 vs. North Dakota |
28,700 | 35.0% |
| Omaha | Baxter Arena | 7,898 | 10† | 1,348 | 1,957 Jan. 29 vs. Kansas City |
13,480 | 17.0% |
| Oral Roberts | Mabee Center | 10,154 | 15 | 4,047 | 6,094 Nov. 26 vs. Oklahoma St |
60,714 | 39.9% |
| St. Thomas | Schoenecker Arena | 1,800 | 13 | 947 | 1,405 Feb. 12 vs. North Dakota St |
12,323 | 52.7% |
| South Dakota | Sanford Coyote Sports Center | 6,000 | 15 | 1,658 | 4,224 Feb. 5 vs. South Dakota St |
24,883 | 27.6% |
| South Dakota State | Frost Arena | 6,500 | 14 | 2,298 | 3,821 Jan. 29 vs. North Dakota St |
32,180 | 35.4% |
| Western Illinois | Western Hall | 5,139 | 12† | 886 | 1,500 Nov. 16 vs. Iowa Wesleyan |
10,635 | 17.2% |
Bold - Exceed capacity
† - Does not include games where an attendance figure was not given
As of February 27, 2022
Does not include exhibition games
All-League Honors edit
| Honor | Recipient |
|---|---|
| Player of the Year | Baylor Scheierman, South Dakota State |
| Defensive Player of the Year | Marvin Nesbitt Jr., Kansas City |
| Sixth Man of the Year | Luke Appel, South Dakota State |
| Freshman of the Year | Paul Bruns, North Dakota |
| Newcomer of the Year | Evan Gilyard II, Kansas City |
| Coach of the Year | Eric Henderson, South Dakota State |
| All-Summit League First Team | Max Abmas, Oral Roberts |
| Evan Gilyard II, Kansas City | |
| Sam Griesel, North Dakota State | |
| Rocky Kreuser, North Dakota State | |
| Baylor Scheierman, South Dakota State | |
| Douglas Wilson, South Dakota State | |
| All-Summit League Second Team | Mason Archambault, South Dakota |
| Trenton Massner, Western Illinois | |
| Marvin Nesbitt Jr., Kansas City | |
| Kruz Perrott-Hunt, South Dakota | |
| Arkel Lamar, Kansas City | |
| All-Summit League Honorable Mention | Luke Barisic, Western Illinois |
| Paul Bruns, North Dakota | |
| K.J. Hunt, Denver | |
| Tasos Kamateros, South Dakota | |
| Issac McBride, Oral Roberts | |
| All-Defensive Team | Boogie Anderson, South Dakota |
| Tyree Eady, North Dakota State | |
| Trenton Massner, Western Illinois | |
| Marvin Nesbitt Jr., Kansas City | |
| Douglas Wilson, South Dakota State | |
| All-Newcomer Team | Luka Barisic, Western Illinois |
| Evan Gilyard II, Kansas City | |
| K.J. Hunt, Denver | |
| Trenton Massner, Western Illinois | |
| Zeke Mayo, South Dakota State |
Source:[4]
Postseason edit
Conference Tournament edit
The top 8 teams from the Summit League qualify for the conference tournament. The tournament is at the Denny Sanford Premier Center in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.
| Quarterfinals March 5 & 6 ESPN+ | Semifinals March 7 ESPN+ | Championship March 8 ESPN2 | ||||||||||||
| 1 | South Dakota State | 87 | ||||||||||||
| 8 | Omaha | 79 | ||||||||||||
| 1 | South Dakota State | 83 | ||||||||||||
| 5 | South Dakota | 60 | ||||||||||||
| 4 | Kansas City | 61 | ||||||||||||
| 5 | South Dakota | 74 | ||||||||||||
| 1 | South Dakota State | 75 | ||||||||||||
| 2 | North Dakota State | 69 | ||||||||||||
| 2 | North Dakota State | 82 | ||||||||||||
| 7 | Denver | 62 | ||||||||||||
| 2 | North Dakota State | 92 | ||||||||||||
| 3 | Oral Roberts | 72 | ||||||||||||
| 3 | Oral Roberts | 80 | ||||||||||||
| 6 | Western Illinois | 68 | ||||||||||||
NCAA tournament edit
Only South Dakota State was selected to participate in the tournament as the conference's automatic bid.
| Seed | Region | School | First Round | Second Round | Sweet Sixteen | Elite Eight | Final Four | Championship |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. 13 | Buffalo Regional | South Dakota State | No. 4 Providence
|
— | — | — | — | — |
| 1 Bid | W-L (%): | 0–1 (.000) | 0–0 (–) | 0–0 (–) | 0–0 (–) | 0–0 (–) | TOTAL: 0–1 (.000) |
References edit
- ^ "Jackrabbits picked to repeat as #SummitMBB champions". thesummitleague.org. Retrieved January 1, 2022.
- ^ "2021-22 Men's Basketball Players of the Week". thesummitleague.org. Retrieved January 1, 2022.
- ^ "Sortable Team Stats". Retrieved March 8, 2022.
- ^ "SDSU's Scheierman tabbed #SummitMBB Player of the Year". Retrieved November 16, 2022.