RAPID CITY, S.D. – South Dakota Mines' men's basketball has been playing its best basketball of the season recently, heading into a vital rivalry week of games against Chadron State and Black Hills State.
First up was Chadron State on Tuesday night. It was a defensive battle that ultimately went the way of the Hardrockers, giving them their third straight win and fourth win in the RMAC.
HOW IT HAPPENED
A low-scoring first half favored the Hardrockers, as their strong defense gave them a 27-24 edge as the teams went into the half.
Tre Dowdell had a big half, scoring nine points and adding three assists, while
Keagen Smith grabbed six boards.
In the second half, it was more of the same. The two defenses were difficult to score on, and the game was knotted at 32 with 13:56 to play.
Later,
Mac Terry hit a three, giving the Hardrockers a slight 44-40 edge with 4:30 to play, but Chadron State would tie it up and take the lead on a Dalton Peterson three at 47-44 with 2:05 to play.
Terry would come up clutch again, this time with a two-pointer, cutting the deficit to one with a timeout at 1:24 to play.
It was time for the South Dakota Mines defense to make a play, and as they had done all season, they delivered, forcing a shot clock violation with 1:05 to play, but they were still down one.
Terry delivered again, hitting a three with 36 seconds to play, putting SDM up 49-47.
Dowdell hit two free throws with 9.6 seconds to play, and that sealed as two more free throws from
Abel Hutchinson made it 53-47, and the Hardrockers picked up their third straight victory.
NOTES
Mac Terry led the team in scoring with 17, hitting 6-11 from the field and 5-8 from three-point range…
Tre Dowdell continues his scoring surge, adding 15 on 5-11 shooting and four assists…
Keagen Smith added nine rebounds and four assists along with two steals…
UP NEXT
Looking to continue their winning streak, the Hardrockers are back in action against Black Hills State on Saturday at 7:00 p.m.
You can find the latest on South Dakota Mines men's basketball all year long on X and Instagram (@hardrockermbb), and you can also follow on Facebook at Hardrocker Men's Basketball. The latest on South Dakota Mines athletics can be found by following us on X at @GoHardrockers.
About South Dakota Mines
The South Dakota School of Mines & Technology is a member of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) and NCAA Division II offering 13 men's and women's varsity intercollegiate athletic programs. The Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference is a premier NCAA Division II conference with 15 members, as well as four associate members, located in the states of California, Colorado, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, South Dakota, and Utah.
