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North Dakota State vs South Dakota State Odds and Picks for Summit League Title Game

George Nassios

by George Nassios in College Basketball

Updated Mar 8, 2022 · 10:06 AM PST

South Dakota State guard Baylor Scheierman dribbling up the court
South Dakota State guard Baylor Scheierman drives up court during an NCAA college basketball game against Iowa State, Wednesday, Dec. 2, 2020, in Ames, Iowa. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)
  • The North Dakota State vs South Dakota State odds favor the Jackrabbits by 6.5-points on Tuesday, March 8th at 9 pm ET
  • Including their two tournament victories, the Jackrabbits have won 20 games in a row
  • Read below for the North Dakota State vs South Dakota State odds, analysis, and betting prediction

South Dakota State (29-4, 18-15 ATS) is one victory away from completing a perfect season against teams in their conference and becoming the first team in Summit League history to go undefeated in the regular season and win the conference championship.

The Jackrabbits will put their perfect Summit League season on the line in the conference championship game on Tuesday, March 8th, against the North Dakota State Bison (23-9, 16-15-1 ATS). Tip off goes at 9:00 pm ET from the Denny Sanford Premier Center in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

North Dakota State vs South Dakota State Odds

Team Moneyline Spread Total
North Dakota State Bison +195 +6.5  (-110) O 151 (-105)
South Dakota State Jackrabbits -240 -6.5  (-110) U 151  (-115)

Odds as of March 8th at DraftKings Sportsbook.

 

The Jackrabbits are favored against North Dakota State. If they win on Tuesday, they are likely to earn a #12 seed in the NCAA Tournament according to SBD’s latest March Madness bracket projection.

South Dakota State coasted to a semi-final victory over South Dakota, jumping out to a 55-30 first half lead and ultimately winning 83-60. The Bison also had no problem disposing of last year’s conference champs, Oral Roberts, in their semi, winning 92-72. The Summit League final can be seen on ESPN 2 on Tuesday night.

North Dakota State Bison Betting Analysis

It’s the best two teams in the conference going head-to-head in this final. While the Jackrabbits are enjoying a season for the ages, North Dakota State entered the Summit League Tournament as the 2nd seed and have lived up to their billing so far.

The Bison have posted impressive back-to-back 20 point victories in the Summit League Tournament so far and have given the Jackrabbits two of their toughest tests of the season losing by just 4 points in both meetings, 90-86 on December 30th and 80-76 a month later.

After losing in the Conference Championship to Oral Roberts last year, revenge must have tasted sweet for the Bison in this year’s semi-final. Junior Guard, Sam Griesel led all Bison scorers against the Golden Eagles pouring in 26 points on 67% shooting, while freshman forward Grant Nelson was even more efficient 20 points on 82% shooting from the field.

North Dakota State ranked 115th in the nation with an effective field goal percentage of 51.3% this season. In their two tournament victories over Denver and Oral Roberts they combined to shoot 56% from the field.

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South Dakota State Jackrabbits Betting Analysis

The Jackrabbits are just one win away from the Summit League Title and a berth in March Madness. SDSU would be one of the most dangerous mid-major schools in the tournament as they currently hold an overall KenPom efficiency ranking of 69th. The Bison are the next closest Summit League team in the KenPom rankings at 146th.

South Dakota State did endure a bit of a scare in their quarter-final win over lowly Nebraska Omaha. They were up just 6 points at the half and held on for an 87-79 victory. The Jackrabbits defense had no answer for Mavericks freshman Frankie Fiddler in that one as he dropped 34 points.

The Jackrabbits defense has been a problem all season long, but their offense has more than made up for it. They ranked 14th in all of Division I college basketball in offensive efficiency rating averaging a whopping 116.9 points per 100 possessions. They garnered enough attention from oddsmakers to get +12000 Final Four odds in late February, roughly on par with the likes of Kansas State and Florida State.

The Over had hit in each of the Jackrabbits’ last seven games as a neutral site college basketball betting favorite, prior to their 83-60 semifinal victory over South Dakota which broke that streak.

North Dakota State vs South Dakota State Pick

Given that their offense is amongst the best in all of Division I, while their defense is on the opposite end of the spectrum, the over has been a really popular betting pick in Jackrabbits games recently, and going back to the regular season, the over has hit in three of their last four.

Both regular season contests against the Bison also hit the over and the North Dakota offense has been scoring the ball with great efficiency.

While the over seems like a good bet, the fact that the Bison are shooting the ball so well and peaking at the right time makes it feel like a huge upset could be brewing for this conference final. They gave South Dakota all they could handle in both contests in the regular season and should prove to be a formidable opponent once again.

The Bison have gone 6-1 against the spread dating back to the regular season and at the very least, the trends points to them being able to cover in this one as well.

Pick: North Dakota State +6.5 (-110)

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