South Dakota State vs Oho State 3/15/18 - CBB Picks & Predictions

On Thursday March 15, the No. 12 seeded South Dakota State Jackrabbits (28-6) will play the No. 5 seeded Ohio State Buckeyes (24-8) in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament’s West Regional. South Dakota State won the Summit League Tournament with a 97-87 victory over South Dakota on Tuesday. David Jenkins led the Jackrabbits with 29 points, while Mike Daum added 25 points and 11 boards. The Jackrabbits enter the tournament riding an 11-game winning streak.

Ohio State lost its last outing to Penn State 69-68 in the quarterfinals of the Big Ten Tournament. Keita Bates-Diop led Ohio State in the loss with 25 points, but turned the ball over late with Oho State leading by one point. Mike Daum is the leading scorer and rebounder for the Jackrabbits averaging 23.8 points and 10.4 rebounds. David Jenkins Jr. averages 16.1 points per game which is second on the team. Brandon Key is leading the team in assists with an average of 3.3 per game. During the regular season, South Dakota State scored an average of 84.9 points per game, No. 6 in the nation, while allowing an average of 74.1.

Keita Bates-Diop is leading Ohio State in scoring with an average of 19.4 points per game and in rebounding averaging 8.8 rebounds per game. Three other Buckeyes are averaging double figures in scoring. The leader in assists is C.J. Jackson with an average of 3.9 per game. As a team, Ohio State is shooting 48.5% from the field and 35.3% from 3-point territory. During the regular season, the Buckeyes scored an average of 75.8 points per game, while allowing an average of 66.7.