# 2021–22 South Dakota State Jackrabbits men's basketball team

The 2021–22 South Dakota State Jackrabbits men's basketball team represented South Dakota State University in the 2021–22 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Jackrabbits, led by third-year head coach Eric Henderson, played their home games at Frost Arena in Brookings, South Dakota, as members of the Summit League. They finished the season 30–5, 18–0 in Summit League Play to finish as regular season champions. As the No. 1 seed, they defeated Omaha, South Dakota, and North Dakota State to win the Summit League tournament. They received the conference’s automatic bid to the NCAA tournament as the No. 13 seed in the Midwest Region, where they lost in the first round to Providence.
This was the first season in program history that the Jackrabbits eclipsed 30 wins in a single campaign.

## Previous season

In a season limited due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the Jackrabbits finished the 2020–21 season 16–7, 9–3 in Summit League play to finish as Summit League regular season champions. They defeated Omaha in the quarterfinals of the Summit League tournament, before being upset by the No. 4-seeded and eventual tournament champions, Oral Roberts, in the semifinals.

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Non-conference regular season ||||||
| November 9, 2021* 8:15 pm, MidcoSN/ESPN+ | | Bradley | W 81–65 | 1–0 | Frost Arena (2,445) Brookings, SD |
| November 12, 2021* 7:00 pm, SECN+ | | at No. 14 Alabama | L 88–104 | 1–1 | Coleman Coliseum (10,546) Tuscaloosa, AL |
| November 14, 2021* 2:00 pm, ESPN+ | | at Stephen F. Austin | W 83–71 | 2–1 | William R. Johnson Coliseum (1,878) Nacogdoches, TX |
| November 17, 2021* 7:00 pm, MidcoSN/ESPN+ | | Montana State | W 91–74 | 3–1 | Frost Arena (1,761) Brookings, SD |
| November 18, 2021* 8:15 pm, MidcoSN/ESPN+ | | Presentation | W 99–62 | 4–1 | Frost Arena (1,531) Brookings, SD |
| November 22, 2021* 6:00 pm, ESPN+ | | vs. Nevada Crossover Classic | W 102–75 | 5–1 | Sanford Pentagon (1,643) Sioux Falls, SD |
| November 23, 2021* 8:30 pm, ESPN+ | | vs. Washington Crossover Classic | L 76–87 | 5–2 | Sanford Pentagon (1,600) Sioux Falls, SD |
| November 24, 2021* 8:30 pm, ESPN+ | | vs. George Mason Crossover Classic | W 80–76 | 6–2 | Sanford Pentagon (1,626) Sioux Falls, SD |
| November 30, 2021* 7:00 pm | | Prairie View A&M | W 99–90 | 7–2 | Frost Arena (1,296) Brookings, SD |
| December 3, 2021* 7:00 pm | | Minnesota Morris | W 112–47 | 8–2 | Frost Arena (1,284) Brookings, SD |
| December 8, 2021* 8:00 pm, ESPN+ | | at Idaho | L 84–98 | 8–3 | ICCU Arena (1,051) Moscow, ID |
| December 11, 2021* 2:00 pm, P12N | | vs. Washington State | W 77–74 | 9–3 | Spokane Arena (1,686) Spokane, WA |
| December 15, 2021* 6:00 pm, ESPN+ | | at Missouri State | L 63–75 | 9–4 | JQH Arena (3,027) Springfield, MO |
| Summit League regular season ||||||
| December 20, 2021 7:00 pm, MidcoSN2/ESPN+ | | Kansas City | W 89–57 | 10–4 (1–0) | Frost Arena (1,483) Brookings, SD |
| December 22, 2021 7:00 pm, MidcoSN/ESPN+ | | Oral Roberts | W 82–76 | 11–4 (2–0) | Frost Arena (1,955) Brookings, SD |
| December 30, 2021 7:00 pm, ESPN+ | | at North Dakota State | W 90–86 | 12–4 (3–0) | Scheels Center (3,408) Fargo, ND |
| January 1, 2022 7:00 pm, MidcoSN | | at North Dakota | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Postponed due to COVID-19 issues | Betty Engelstad Sioux Center Grand Forks, ND |
| January 8, 2022 6:00 pm, MidcoSN/ESPN+ | | South Dakota | W 84–65 | 13–4 (4–0) | Frost Arena (3,351) Brookings, SD |
| January 13, 2022 7:30 pm | | at Omaha | W 95–86 | 14–4 (5–0) | Baxter Arena Omaha, NE |
| January 15, 2022 2:00 pm | | Denver | W 80–62 | 15–4 (6–0) | Frost Arena (1,595) Brookings, SD |
| January 20, 2022 7:00 pm | | at St. Thomas | W 92–77 | 16–4 (7–0) | Schoenecker Arena (1,153) St. Paul, MN |
| January 22, 2022 2:00 pm | | at Western Illinois | W 93–75 | 17–4 (8–0) | Western Hall (1,206) Macomb, IL |
| January 27, 2022 7:00 pm, MidcoSN/ESPN+ | | North Dakota | W 96–61 | 18–4 (9–0) | Frost Arena (1,856) Brookings, SD |
| January 29, 2022 2:00 pm, MidcoSN2/ESPN+ | | North Dakota State | W 80–76 | 19–4 (10–0) | Frost Arena (3,821) Brookings, SD |
| January 31, 2022 7:00 pm, MidcoSN | | at North Dakota Rescheduled from January 1 | W 70–64 | 20–4 (11–0) | Betty Engelstad Sioux Center (1,254) Grand Forks, ND |
| February 5, 2022 7:00 pm, MidcoSN/ESPN+ | | at South Dakota | W 89–79 | 21–4 (12–0) | Sanford Coyote Sports Center (4,224) Vermillion, SD |
| February 10, 2022 8:00 pm | | at Denver | W 84–61 | 22–4 (13–0) | Hamilton Gymnasium (767) Denver, CO |
| February 12, 2022 4:15 pm, MidcoSN | | Omaha | W 82–61 | 23–4 (14–0) | Frost Arena (3,380) Brookings, SD |
| February 17, 2022 7:00 pm, MidcoSN2/ESPN+ | | Western Illinois | W 91–66 | 24–4 (15–0) | Frost Arena (3,345) Brookings, SD |
| February 19, 2022 2:00 pm, MidcoSN/ESPN+ | | St. Thomas | W 79–60 | 25–4 (16–0) | Frost Arena (3,122) Brookings, SD |
| February 24, 2022 7:00 pm | | at Oral Roberts | W 106–102 $^{OT}$ | 26–4 (17–0) | Mabee Center (4,894) Tulsa, OK |
| February 26, 2022 7:00 pm | | at Kansas City | W 86–75 | 27–4 (18–0) | Swinney Recreation Center (1,558) Kansas City, MO |
| Summit League tournament ||||||
| March 5, 2022 6:00 pm, ESPN+ | (1) | vs. (8) Omaha Quarterfinals | W 87–79 | 28–4 | Denny Sanford Premier Center (9,336) Sioux Falls, SD |
| March 7, 2022 6:00 pm, ESPN+ | (1) | vs. (5) South Dakota Semifinals | W 83–60 | 29–4 | Denny Sanford Premier Center (10,418) Sioux Falls, SD |
| March 8, 2022 8:00 pm, ESPN2 | (1) | vs. (2) North Dakota State Championship | W 75–69 | 30–4 | Denny Sanford Premier Center Sioux Falls, SD |
| NCAA tournament ||||||
| March 17, 2022 11:40 am, truTV | (13 MW) | vs. (4 MW) No. 13 Providence First Round | L 57–66 | 30–5 | KeyBank Center Buffalo, NY |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Central. ||||||
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