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South Dakota State vs Western Illinois Men- The Summit League Basketball Tournament
Dick Carlson/Inertia
79
Winner Western Illinois WIU 10-20
76
South Dakota State SDSU 24-8
Winner
Western Illinois WIU
10-20
79
Final
76
South Dakota State SDSU
24-8
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Western Illinois WIU 38 41 79
South Dakota State SDSU 28 48 76

Game Recap: Men's Basketball | | WIU Athletic Communications

Leathernecks Upset South Dakota State in Summit League Quarterfinal

For the first time in the men’s tournament history, the No. 8 seed upset the top-seeded team.

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – For the first time in three seasons, The Summit League Tournament's title game will not include the three-time reigning champions, South Dakota State. Western Illinois' men's basketball team knocked off the Jackrabbits, 79-76, in the quarterfinal round Saturday (March 9) to become the first No. 8 seed in league history to defeat the No. 1. 

The final two minutes inside the Denny Sanford PREMIER Center were electrifying as the Leathernecks clung to a 77-76 advantage with 11.5 seconds left. David Jenkins knocked down a desperation 3-pointer for what became SDSU's final bucket of the game and both teams were over the foul limit when the Jacks elected to send Keshon Montague to the line.  He entered the game for the first time with 47 seconds left on the clock and nailed both free throws to cement Western's victory. 

"It's a tremendous victory for our program," head coach Billy Wright said. "We kept chipping away at it in the sense of last year and last week. Going into this game, we knew it was hard to beat a team three times in a row. Hats off to our guys for making the adjustments to execute the game plan for 40 minutes."

Ben Pyle brought the Leatherneck contingent to its feet as he scored the first points of the game on a left-wing 3-pointer, which spiraled into a 9-4 WIU edge by the first media timeout (15:36). The freshman scored five points during the stretch, and when his team saw its lead relinquished, 13-12, Pyle responded on the very next possession.

Back-to-back 3-pointers forced SDSU to call a timeout with Western ahead, 18-13, at the 11:31 mark and turnovers were converted into points for the Purple and Gold, as a pair of steals led to fastbreak buckets by Isaac Johnson.

The Leathernecks took a double-digit lead at 29-18 with 7:10 remaining and stayed on top for a 38-28 edge at halftime.
 
South Dakota State went 4-for-5 from the field just before the first media of the second half (15:52), but the makes weren't enough to knock Western off course. Coming out of the break, back-to-back 3-pointers from Webster and Zion Young helped WIU to its largest lead of the night at 50-36.

The Jacks pulled within seven with 8:41 remaining and were met by the Leathernecks at the end of each threat. Webster and Johnson trapped the Jacks in the frontcourt, which led to the steal and score that extended Western's edge to 65-56 at the 5:39 mark and the team kept its advantage through the final horn. 

Pyle and Webster finished the night with 17 points apiece while Brandon Gilbeck, Zion Young and Isaac Johnson each added 13. Gilbeck also added a double-double with a game-high 13 rebounds. 

The Leathernecks continue their time in The Summit League Tournament Monday at 6 p.m. against the winner of No. 4 North Dakota State versus No. 5 Oral Roberts. 
 
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