WEDNESDAY SPORTS, NOVEMBER 12, 2025
MITCHELL KERNELS
— A trip to the Class AA state volleyball tournament is on the line Thursday night when the No. 8 seed Mitchell Kernels host the No. 9 seed Spearfish Spartans in the SoDAK 16. The winner advances to the Class AA State Volleyball Tournament, set for November 20–22 in Rapid City. Mitchell enters the postseason at 15-8, its best record since 2018 — the same year the Kernels last qualified for state. They’ll look to replicate their performance from October 4, when they swept Spearfish 3-0 on the road. Since 2007, Mitchell has dominated the series, winning 20 of 24 matchups against the Spartans. Match time is to be determined.
DAKOTA WESLEYAN
— Dakota Wesleyan men’s basketball host Valley City State on Wednesday night at the Corn Palace at 7 pm. The Tigers are 3-1 on the season and coming off an 82-60 loss at Mt. Mercy on Sunday.
— Dakota Wesleyan volleyball will be at No. 1 seed Northwestern on Wednesday at 7 pm in the GPAC Tournament semifinals.
— No. 9 Dakota Wesleyan women’s basketball will be at Hastings on Saturday at 2 pm.
— Dakota Wesleyan football ends the season on Saturday when they host Hastings at Joe Quintal Field at 1 pm.
SOUTH DAKOTA STATE
— South Dakota State senior forward Brooklyn Meyer earned the season’s first Summit League Women’s Basketball Player of the Week award, league officials announced Tuesday. Meyer captured her seventh career weekly honor after helping the Jackrabbits to a 2-0 start. Meyer opened the season with one of the best performances of her career, scoring 33 points to lead the Jackrabbits to a 78-62 road win over Creighton. Meyer followed up that effort with a double-double, tallying 22 points and 11 rebounds, in SDSU’s 79-65 home-opening win over Rice on Friday.
— South Dakota State middle blocker Sydni Schetnan was named the Summit League Volleyball Defensive Player of the Week on Tuesday. Schetnan led the league with 21 total blocks across a pair of four-set victories for the Jackrabbits as they clinched the outright regular season Summit League title, improving to 14-0 in the conference. Schetnan had 13 blocks in a four-set victory against St. Thomas. Schetnan’s 13 total blocks are tied for third most in a four-set match in Division I this season. She also set a school record in a four-set match with 11 block assists against the Tommies.
— South Dakota State women’s soccer will face Iowa in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Friday at 5 pm in Iowa City. The Jackrabbits captured The Summit League Championship on Sunday with a 2-0 victory over Oral Roberts. SDSU makes its ninth NCAA Tournament appearance. The Jacks lost in the NCAA First Round to Minnesota a season ago 2-0. Iowa earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament after an 11-4-4 overall record, including a 6-2-3 mark in Big Ten Conference. Iowa was ranked 21st in the most recent Coaches Top 25 Rankings.
— South Dakota State women’s basketball shot 58% from the field in a 91-60 win on Tuesday night vs. Murray State. Brooklyn Meyer had 24 points, seven rebounds and five blocks. SDSU travels to Rapid City to face Montana on Saturday at 7 pm CST.
— South Dakota State men’s basketball will be at Oregon on Wednesday at 8:30 pm.
— South Dakota State volleyball will be at Kansas City on Thursday at 7 pm.
SOUTH DAKOTA
— USD men’s basketball hosts Southern Indiana on Wednesday at 7 pm.
— USD women’s basketball will be at Kansas State on Thursday at 4 pm.
— USD volleyball will be at Oral Roberts on Saturday at Noon.
— USD football ends the regular season on Saturday at Southern Illinois at Noon.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
— Ohio State stayed atop the College Football Playoff rankings for the second straight week Tuesday night, while Indiana remained at No. 2 despite barely squeaking out a victory last week at Penn State, while third-ranked Texas A&M coasted. Alabama and Georgia rounded out the same top five as in last week’s season-opening rankings. Texas Tech jumped two spots to No. 6, moving one notch ahead of Mississippi, which dropped to 7. The biggest shifts came lower in the rankings, where Miami moved up three spots to No. 15 and vaulted over Georgia Tech to claim the ACC’s spot in the 12-team bracket. And South Florida earned the No. 24 ranking, which brings with it the 12th and final spot in the Week 2 projected bracket. At No. 8 was Oregon, followed by Notre Dame and Texas.
— Brian Kelly is suing LSU, arguing that the university is declining to acknowledge that the recently fired coach is owed his full $54 million buyout. It alleges that LSU representatives told Kelly’s attorneys that the coach was never “formally terminated” the day after LSU’s 49-25 loss to Texas A&M because then-athletic director Scott Woodward didn’t have the authority to fire him. Woodward resigned under pressure four days after Kelly’s firing. The lawsuit says LSU representatives told Kelly’s lawyers for the first time on Monday that the university intends to fire him for cause, a move that could substantially reduce Kelly’s buyout.
COLLEGE BASKETBALL
No. 12 Louisville 96, No. 9 Kentucky 88
No. 14 Illinois 81, No. 11 Texas Tech 77
No. 19 Gonzaga 90, No. 23 Creighton 63
MLB
— Cleveland’s Stephen Vogt is the AL Manager of the Year for the second straight year. Same for Milwaukee’s Pat Murphy on the NL side. Cincinnati’s Terry Francona was second, followed by Philadelphia’s Rob Thomson. The last AL manager to win the award in consecutive seasons was Tampa Bay’s Kevin Cash in 2020 and 2021. The last NL manager was Bobby Cox for Atlanta in 2004 and 2005.
NFL
— Jacksonville Jaguars two-way star Travis Hunter had season-ending surgery to repair the ligaments in his right knee and is expected to return within six months. The team says there was no additional damage to Hunter’s knee, which he injured during a non-contact drill in practice last month. Hunter was coming off a career performance in London before his injury. The 2024 Heisman Trophy winner caught eight passes for 101 yards and a touchdown against the L.A. Rams, and the Jaguars were planning to use him as their No. 1 receiver moving forward.
NBA
— The NBA announced its long-awaited plans to overhaul the All-Star Game, laying out how the new “United States versus the World” format will go and how the teams will be formed. The NBA will go to a three-team format featuring eight-man rosters, two of which will be made up of American players, and a third of international selections. This year, the starters will be the five top vote-getters, regardless of position, and the reserves will be the top seven, also regardless of position. This year’s All-Star Weekend takes place in Los Angeles and kicks off Friday, February 13.
— The Dallas Mavericks have fired general manager Nico Harrison nine months after the Luka Doncic trade to the Lakers that backfired on the franchise. Harrison was in his fourth season and engineered three trades that helped Dallas on two deep playoff runs.
— Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 28 points and 11 assists in three quarters as the Oklahoma City Thunder rolled past the Golden State Warriors 126-102. Chet Holmgren had 23 points and 11 rebounds. He made all nine of his field goals, both of his 3-pointers and all three of his free throw attempts.
— Tyrese Maxey scored 21 points and Kelly Oubre Jr. scored the go-ahead basket on a follow with 8 seconds left to lead the Philadelphia 76ers to a 102-100 win over the Boston Celtics.
— Jalen Brunson had 32 points and 10 assists as the New York Knicks beat the Memphis Grizzlies 133-120 to improve to 7-0 at home.
— Nikola Jokic scored 35 points and had 15 rebounds as the Denver Nuggets won their fifth game in a row, 122-108 over the Sacramento Kings.
— Lauri Markkanen scored 35 points as the Utah Jazz scored the most points in an NBA game this season with a 152-128 win over the Indiana Pacers. The injury-ravaged Pacers, last season’s Eastern Conference champions, fell to 1-10 and matched the 1989 team for the worst start in franchise history.
Class A SoDak 16 – Tuesday, November 11
No. 1 Dakota Valley 3, No. 16 Platte-Geddes 1 (25-9, 25-8, 23-25, 25-11) – Kori VanDerWerff had 10 kills
No. 2 Dell Rapids 3, No. 15 Todd County 0 (25-9, 25-10, 25-9)
No. 3 Sioux Falls Christian 3, No. 14 McCook Central/Montrose 1 (25-21, 25-9, 23-25, 25-11)
No. 4 Clark/Willow Lake 3, No. 13 Aberdeen Roncalli 0 (2515, 25-21, 25-18)
No. 12 Wagner 3, No. 5 Winner 1 – (25-21, 18-25, 25-16, 25-11) – Hannah Holzbauer had 16 kills and 21 digs
No. 6 Hamlin 3, No. 11 West Central 2 (25-23, 12-25, 16-25, 25-19, 15-9)
No. 10 Rapid City Christian 3, No. 7 Groton Area 2 (25-18, 26-28, 25-21, 20-25, 15-8) – Chloe Weber had 33 kills
No. 9 St. Thomas More 3, No. 8 Miller 1 (25-23, 22-25, 25-21, 25-18)
Class A State Volleyball Tournament – Thursday, November 20 in Rapid City
No. 1 Dakota Valley vs. No. 8 Wagner – Noon CST
No. 4 Clark/Willow Lake vs. No. 5 Hamlin – 1:45 pm CST
No. 2 Dell Rapids vs. No. 7 Rapid City Christian – 6 pm CST
No. 3 Sioux Falls Christian vs. No. 6 St. Thomas More – 7:45 CST
Class B SoDak 16 – Tuesday, November 11
No. 1 Chester 3, No. 16 Corsica-Stickney 0 (25-11, 25-11, 25-)
No. 2 Northwestern 3, No. 15 Castlewood 0 (25-16, 25-15, 25-21)
No. 3 Warner 3, No. 14 Colman-Egan 0 (25-21, 25-20, 25-22)
No. 4 Parkston 3, No. 13 Ipswich 0 (25-22, 25-16, 25-21) – First Class B State Tournament appearance
No. 5 Bennett County 3, No. 12 Lemmon 0 (25-18, 25-21, 25-20)
No. 11 Herreid/Selby Area 3, No. 6 Burke 2 (25-18, 12-25, 25-23, 21-25, 15-13)
No. 7 Harding County 3, No. 10 Wolsey-Wessington 1 (25-22, 17-25, 25-22, 25-21)
No. 9 Gayville-Volin 3, No. 8 Kadoka Area 2 (23-25, 22-25, 25-21, 25-13, 15-13)
Class B State Volleyball Tournament – Thursday, November 20 in Rapid City
No. 1 Chester vs. No. 8 Herreid/Selby Area – Noon CST
No. 4 Parkston vs. No. 5 Bennett County – 1:45 pm CST
No. 2 Northwestern vs. No. 7 Gayville-Volin – 6 pm CST
No. 3 Warner vs. No. 6 Harding County – 7:45 pm CST
HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL CHAMPIONSHIPS
Class 9B Championship: No. 1 Dell Rapids St. Mary’s (11-0) vs. No. 2 Avon (10-1) – Thursday at 11 am
Class 9AA Championship: No. 1 Freeman/Marion/Freeman Academy (11-0) vs. No. 2 Elkton-Lake Benton (9-1) – Thursday at 7 pm
Class 9A Championship: No. 1 Wall (11-0) vs. No. 7 Howard (9-2) – Friday at 10 am
Class 11B Championship: No. 1 Elk Point Jefferson (9-0) vs. No. 2 St. Thomas More (11-0) – Friday at 2 pm
Class 11AA Championship: No. 1 Yankton (9-2) vs. No. 3 Pierre (8-3) – Friday at 7 pm
Class 11A Championship: No. 1 Sioux Falls Christian (10-0) vs. No. 3 Lennox (9-2) – Saturday at Noon
Class 11AAA Championship: No. 1 Brandon Valley (10-1) vs. No. 2 SF Lincoln (10-1) – Saturday at 5 pm
Class AA SoDak 16 – THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 12
No. 16 Sturgis (9-22) at No. 1 Harrisburg (31-2), 6 p.m.
No. 9 Spearfish (20-12) at No. 8 Mitchell (15-8), 6 p.m.
No. 13 Yankton (11-15) at No. 4 Sioux Falls Lincoln (18-5), 6:30 p.m.
No. 12 Huron (9-13) at No. 5 Watertown (20-9), time TBD.
No. 15 Rapid City Central (9-21) at No. 2 Brandon Valley (24-3), 6 p.m.
No. 10 Aberdeen Central (15-11) at No. 7 Sioux Falls Washington (16-7), 6 p.m.
No. 14 Brookings (11-21) at No. 3 O’Gorman (23-4), time TBD
No. 11 Sioux Falls Jefferson (11-12) at No. 6 Rapid City Stevens (26-11), 7 p.m.