The Summit League’s top two teams will lock horns when the IPFW Mastodons (20-7) welcome the South Dakota State Jackrabbits (20-6) to Allen County War Memorial Coliseum. Action begins at 7:00 pm ET on Thursday, Feb. 18.
The Mastodons enter this game hoping for similar success after topping Denver 88-84 in their last matchup. Max Landis was the game’s leading scorer with 30 points on 9-for-13 shooting. The Jackrabbits, meanwhile, are coming off an 85-68 win against South Dakota in their last game. Mike Daum led the game in scoring by accounting for 24 points on 7-for-11 shooting.
Landis has taken his game to another level over the last five games for the Mastodons. During that stretch, he has averaged 26.0 points, 1.4 rebounds, 4.4 assists, and 5.0 three-pointers. The Jackrabbits also have their own player combo that has upped their production in that same time frame. Daum has averaged 18.2 points, 5.8 rebounds, 0.8 assists, 0.8 blocks, and 1.4 three-pointers, while George Marshall has put up 19.4 points, 3.8 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 1.2 steals, and 3.2 three-pointers.
This is the second game of the season between these two teams, with the Jackrabbits winning the first matchup 92-76. John Konchar had a double-double in the loss with 22 points and 13 rebounds.
The Mastodons have gone 20-7 Straight Up (SU) and 17-5 Against The Spread (ATS).
As for their opponent, the Jackrabbits have records of 13-9 ATS and 20-6 SU. Offensively, they average 75.6 points per game on the road, which is 45th in the country. The Jackrabbits average 68.2 points allowed per game, but have damaged those numbers in the past 10 games, allowing 77.3 points per game during that span.
The Jackrabbits’ win over IPFW in their last clash bumped their SU record over their most recent meetings to 7-3. With a 6-4 record, the Jackrabbits also have the advantage ATS. South Dakota State held the advantage in field goals, rebounds, and three-pointers two times in the last five matchups. On the other side of the court, IPFW never accomplished this feat in that span.
Predictions: SU Winner – SDakSt, ATS Winner – SDakSt
Notes
The IPFW Mastodons average 79.4 points per game, ranking 39th in the nation. The South Dakota State Jackrabbits rank 81st in points allowed with 68.2.
South Dakota State has allowed an average of 72.1 points per away game this season. IPFW averages 86.9 points per home game, ranking seventh in scoring.
The IPFW Mastodons rank 37th for their offensive rating of 113.3. The South Dakota State Jackrabbits have a defensive rating of 98.9 (ranked 82nd).
The IPFW Mastodons average 70.0 possessions and 1.133 points per possession in games this season. The South Dakota State Jackrabbits average fewer possessions with 69.0, as well as fewer points per possession with 1.123.
The IPFW Mastodons have one of the best effective field goal percentages this season, ranking 18th in the country with an eFG% of 55.7%. The South Dakota State Jackrabbits have split their games this season (2-2) when opponents record a similar or higher eFG%.
The IPFW Mastodons average 24.0 three point attempts per game, and the South Dakota State Jackrabbits attempt 21.0 per game. When going for at least 20 three pointers in a game this season, both teams have winning records; IPFW is 16-6 and South Dakota State is 10-6.
IPFW ranks 63rd in the nation with an assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.25. South Dakota State is ranked lower at 227th with an A/TO of .97.
IPFW ranks 246th in offensive rebounds, while South Dakota State ranks 89th in defensive rebounds.
On average, IPFW forces a turnover rate of 16.0%. When South Dakota State turns over the ball at a similar or higher rate, the team has a stellar 13-4 record.
