Summit League Men's Basketball Preview

Welcome back, Jacks fans! Today is where the fun begins in college basketball season, at least for the Summit League, with conference play starting today. 

These mid-major teams have survived a challenging nonconference schedule. Win or loss, those games against Power Five schools are meant to prepare each team for the final two months of the season. Each program has had its chance to find its identity and now are ready to showcase that against its biggest rivals. 

As you might have heard, the men’s side is wide open. There is no clear favorite like there has been in years past and big names like Mike Daum, David Jenkins Jr., John Konchar and Zach Jackson are gone. However, there are many rising players ready to take over. 

Rather than go full into detail for each team and spoil future opponent insight posts, I’ll just give a short description of what my impression is of each team right now. 

1. South Dakota (9-5): If there was a favorite in the league, it would be the Coyotes. Led by Stanley Umude and Tyler Hagedorn (missed all of 2018-19 with an injury), USD is dangerous and has a lot of athleticism all over the floor. The Coyotes lost their final two nonleague games but are still 9-5 overall. If they stay healthy, look out.
   
2. North Dakota State (8-5): As expected, the defending tournament champs haven’t gone away and are not far behind from USD. Vinnie Shahid and Tyson Ward are the only two scorers averaging double figures, but four more Bison are averaging more than six points per game. One factor that stands out is their defense, which only gives up 64.2 ppg.
   
3. South Dakota State (9-6): Don’t let the new coach and young team fool you, the Jacks are fun to watch. Douglas Wilson, who has a strong case for newcomer of the year, has impressed with his explosiveness underneath the basket. Brandon Key has given the Jacks experience at the point and has commanded the floor well early on. They are continuing to improve and will be a threat all season long.
   
4. Oral Roberts (7-6): The top offense in the league to this point goes to the Golden Eagles. Even with 6-foot-8 senior Emmanuel Nzekwesi missing five games, ORU still has three other double-digit scorers. They won four of their final six nonconference games and have scored 90+ points in four games this season. While they are undefeated at home, Oral Roberts is just 1-6 on the road. Something to keep in mind with challenging road environments all over the conference.
   
5. Omaha (7-8): Like the Jacks, Omaha lost its top scorers last season. Zach Jackson and Mitch Hahn are gone, but JT Gibson, Matt Pile and KJ Robinson are here to help the Mavericks contend for a league title once again. Only Western Illinois gives up more points per game than the Mavs, who allow 75.6 ppg. They’ve had some really good moments, like beating Washington State, and some really bad moments like losing four-in-a-row in the first two weeks of December. But expect this team to improve and to be dangerous as the season goes on.
   
6. Purdue Fort Wayne (7-8): The final year in the Summit League for the Mastodons has been led by a heavy attack beyond the arch. PFW is 134-413 from 3-point range this season, but other than that, they don’t score a lot. PFW might have one of the best guard duos in the league with Jarred Godfrey and Brian Patrick, who combine to score 29 ppg, but it might be a tough final season in the league for PFW.
   
7. North Dakota (6-7): Year No. 2 for the Fighting Hawks in the league has gone so-so at the end of conference play. UND ranks second in the conference in scoring with 77.3 points per game, but also turn the ball over 15 times a game. So far in 2019, four players are averaging double figures as the team has a balanced attack on offense. They’ll need to clean things up if they want to contend this year.
   
8. Western Illinois (3-7): Besides last year’s upset over the Jacks in the Summit League Tournament, the Leathernecks haven’t had a lot to cheer about in the last six years. The struggles continue for WIU this year. Despite scoring 77 points per game and having one of the league’s best scorers in Kobe Webster, the Leathernecks are at the bottom of the league once again. While other conference teams have played in 13-15 games, WIU has played just 10.
   
9. Denver (4-10): Conference play hasn’t even started yet and the Pioneers are in danger of missing the conference tournament again. They turn the ball over 15 times per game and record 19 fouls per game while scoring just 63 ppg. The good thing is for Denver, conference play is an opportunity to start fresh and that is definitely what they’ll need. 

Players to watch: 

Stanley Umude (USD)

Douglas Wilson (SDSU)

Kobe Webster (WIU)

Emmanuel Nzekwesi (ORU)

Vinnie Shahid (NDSU

Keys to conference play:

Home vs. Away: It is interesting looking at each team’s record at home and on the road. A lot of teams are winless or just have one or two wins on the road, but are undefeated at home. Because of that, there might be more upsets than usual throughout the season. So each team better be taking advantage of their home court.

Use your nonconference schedule as a strength: Many of these programs scheduled Arizona, Indiana, Gonzaga, UCLA, etc. in November and December. While some may have been blowouts, these Summit League schools need to use that experience to make them better all season long. I think they might find handling pressure and close games easier.

No one is safe: Purdue Fort Wayne was the top team for the first chunk of the season but then fell a few spots down as the season went on. The Jacks were expected to cruise through the season and get a spot in the NCAA Tournament but that didn’t happen. This year, with no clear favorite, it just gets more hectic. We might see a few different teams at the top of the standings throughout the year. There might be injuries and other adversity. It’s important to not get too confident and underestimate anyone.

Early prediction of final standings:

1. NDSU

2. USD

3. SDSU

4. ORU

5. Omaha

6. UND

7. PFW

8. WIU

The Jacks will take on Omaha in a men’s and women’s doubleheader this afternoon. The women will start at 2, followed by the men around 4:30.

If you like what you read or have any recommendations, you can find me on Twitter @Carson_Herbie or email me at carson.herbert@jacks.sdstate.edu