GEORGE TOWN, Cayman Islands – South Dakota State jumped out to a lead two minutes into its third-place contest versus Missouri State at the Cayman Islands Classic on Tuesday, Nov. 26, and never wavered as the Jackrabbits beat the Bears 75-55 at John Gray Gymnasium.
The two sides traded 3-pointers in the early going before an Oscar Cluff jumper in the paint put the Jacks up 5-3 at the 18:06 mark.
SDSU took control from there thanks to a 16-0 scoring run that saw the Jacks jump ahead 19-3 with 13:18 remaining in the half.
Missouri State worked its way back into the matchup by cutting the deficit to 28-24 with 3:52 left in the half. South Dakota State ended any Bears rally by closing the half on an eight-point scoring run to put the Jackrabbits on top 36-24 at halftime.
The Bears briefly got the margin back into single digits, but an Owen Larson 3-pointer with 16:52 remaining pushed SDSU ahead 44-33. The Jackrabbits would lead by as many as 25 points in the second half before SDSU completed the 75-55 victory.
SDSU was led by Oscar Cluff’s 20 points, 12 rebounds and five rebounds. It was the Australian native’s sixth double-double of the season, and third of the Cayman Islands Classic, as the senior center was named to the All-Tournament Team.
Ten Jackrabbits found the scoring column. Following Cluff were Kalen Garry (9), Larson (8) and Matthew Mors (8). Larson dished out a career-high seven assists while Joe Sayler had a career-high seven rebounds.
The Jackrabbits finished the Cayman Islands Classic with a 2-1 record. SDSU is now 6-2 overall while Missouri State dropped to 4-3.
NOTES
- South Dakota State picked up its first victory over Missouri State in its Division I era. The Jacks are now 1-2 against the Bears during that span.
- The Jackrabbits was 28 of 54 (51.9%) from the field and 12-for-14 (85.7%) at the free throw line. SDSU held the Bears to a 30.5% clip from the floor. The Jacks out-rebounded the Bears by a 39-32 edge.
- The Jackrabbits led for over 38 minutes on the night. SDSU totaled a season-high 20 assists in the contest.
UP NEXT
South Dakota State has a six-day layoff until its next game. The Jackrabbits return home next to host Dakota Wesleyan at First Bank & Trust Arena at 7 p.m. on Monday, Dec. 2.