For the first time in four appearances, South Dakota State men's basketball team goes into the NCAA Tournament as a 16 seed.

The Jackrabbits, the 2017 Summit League Tournament champions, will face top seeded Gonzaga, in Salt Lake City, Thursday (March 16) at 1:00 PM CT. The game will be broadcast on TBS.

The Bulldogs (32-1), out of the West Coast Conference, are making their 19th straight appearance in the tournament, their 20th overall. The Zags have advanced as far as the Elite Eight twice, in 1999 and 2015

Coach Mark Few's team is tops in the nation in scoring margin (+23 points), second in field goal percentage (52%), second in opponents field goal percentage (37%), eighth in fewest points allowed (61 per game), and tied for eighth in rebounding margin (+8 per game). Junior guard Nigel Williams-Goss leads Gonzaga in scoring, assists, and steals.

Their lone loss of the year came to BYU, February 25.

This is the fourth trip to the NCAA Tournament for South Dakota State in the last six seasons. Here's a look at the Jacks' previous seeds and results:

  • 2012 - #14 SDSU lost to Baylor, 68-60
  • 2013 - #13 SDSU lost to Michigan, 71-56
  • 2016 - #12 SDSU lost to #5 Maryland, 79-74

The Jackrabbits' lone post season win in the Division I era came against Colorado State in the opening round of the 2015 NIT.

North Dakota, who joins the Summit League in two years, plays as the 15 seed against 2 seed Arizona, Thursday in Salt Lake City


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