South Dakota
Interior dominance paves the way for Jackrabbit women to return to Summit title game
SIOUX FALLS — “Honestly, they’re huge. The other team is just ginormous.”
In those simple, succinct words from North Dakota’s Kiera Pemberton summarizes what every other team in the Summit League is up against when the South Dakota State University women’s basketball team hits the court.
SDSU was bigger and better than the Fighting Hawks in every way on Saturday in the Summit League tournament semifinals, as SDSU pulled away for an 84-55 win at the Premier Center. The Jackrabbits advance to the Summit League title game at 3 p.m. Sunday against either No. 2 Oral Roberts or No. 6 Kansas City, playing for a third consecutive tournament title and fourth NCAA bid in the last five seasons.
The Jacks, now 28-3 on the season, dominated in the stats under the basket. SDSU had a 42-12 edge in points in the paint and a 22-4 margin in second-chance scoring. They outrebounded UND 54-26, including pulling down 18 offensive rebounds and for much of the game, they had as many offensive rebounds as UND had defensive rebounds, illustrating that it was a 50/50 proposition for who would grab a rebound every time the Jacks’ missed a shot.
Nathan Swaffar / Mitchell Republic
And SDSU didn’t have too many issues on offense anyway. Brooklyn Meyer was a force at the forward spot with 22 points and 10 rebounds on 9-for-15 shooting, while Mesa Byom had 11 points and six rebounds. The Jacks also have 6-foot-1 Kallie Thiesen that they can get in the mix, and SDSU coach Aaron Johnston said they’ve started playing Meyer and Thiesen together more to go with the typical Byom and Meyer starting pair.
That attention Meyer gets frees up everyone else. Haleigh Timmer had 14 points and 10 rebounds from a guard spot and point guard Paige Meyer was terrific in her penultimate Summit League tournament game as a senior, scoring 17 points.
“I think that’s really important for us, and it’s a big part of our identity as a team, rebounding and being big down low,” Byom said. “I think that kind of gets us going, and then when we’re not getting shots from outside, that’s just our steady, and we did really good with that today.”
Counting Saturday, the trio of Byom, Thiesen and Brooklyn Meyer have played 368 games for the Jackrabbits in their career, with 13 seasons of combined experience. And Johnston pointed out they all play well off each other as a “really talented rotation.”
“Part of why they’re able to play the way they do is they can defend not only inside, but we switch a lot of screens,” Johnston said. “So they’re out on the perimeter chasing guards around and playing defense, you know, sideline to sideline, and that’s hard. A lot of coaches don’t do that, but that group is really talented.”
UND coach Mallory Bernhard said after the game that they had three different ways to play Brooklyn Meyer defensively, trying to front her in the post, play behind her on the block and also not guarding others to put more attention on the 6-foot-2 star Jacks’ center.
Nathan Swaffar / Mitchell Republic
“The whole game plan was based around how we can give her different looks and what might be the trickle-down effect from that,” Bernhard said. “Because you just can’t give her one look all game. She’s too talented, and AJ is way too good of a coach.”
North Dakota got fine production from its 6-foot-1 sophomore forward Pemberton, who had 23 points through three quarters. But UND had only 22 points from everyone else and shot 29.3% from the field, including 2-for-10 on layups.
“At the end of the day, rebounds just absolutely killed us,” Bernhard said.
They’ve killed a lot of teams this season, with SDSU now 23-0 this season when they’ve outrebounded their opponents.
Nathan Swaffar / Mitchell Republic
The Jackrabbits are now seeking their 12th Summit tournament title since 2009 and improved to 39-5 all-time in the conference tournament. Saturday’s win was the 11th time in tournament history the Jacks’ have scored 80 points or more and have won each time.
SDSU is in that familiar championship position again on Sunday as a large favorite in the conference title game.
“(We have) another opportunity to compete for a tournament title, which I know we’ll be excited about,” Johnston said.
Marcus Traxler is the assistant editor and sports editor for the Mitchell Republic. A past winner of the state’s Outstanding Young Journalist award and the 2023 South Dakota Sportswriter of the Year, he’s worked for the newspaper since 2014 and covers a wide variety of topics. A Minnesota native, Traxler can be reached at mtraxler@mitchellrepublic.com.
South Dakota
SD Lottery Millionaire for Life winning numbers for March 8, 2026
The South Dakota Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big.
Here’s a look at March 8, 2026, results for each game:
Winning Millionaire for Life numbers from March 8 drawing
01-31-32-45-52, Bonus: 05
Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your prize
- Prizes of $100 or less: Can be claimed at any South Dakota Lottery retailer.
- Prizes of $101 or more: Must be claimed from the Lottery. By mail, send a claim form and a signed winning ticket to the Lottery at 711 E. Wells Avenue, Pierre, SD 57501.
- Any jackpot-winning ticket for Dakota Cash or Lotto America, top prize-winning ticket for Lucky for Life, or for the second prizes for Powerball and Mega Millions must be presented in person at a Lottery office. A jackpot-winning Powerball or Mega Millions ticket must be presented in person at the Lottery office in Pierre.
When are the South Dakota Lottery drawings held?
- Powerball: 9:59 p.m. CT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
- Mega Millions: 10 p.m. CT on Tuesday and Friday.
- Lucky for Life: 9:38 p.m. CT daily.
- Lotto America: 9:15 p.m. CT on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
- Dakota Cash: 9 p.m. CT on Wednesday and Saturday.
- Millionaire for Life: 10:15 p.m. CT daily.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a South Dakota editor. You can send feedback using this form.
South Dakota
Kristi Noem’s term as governor freshly roasted by former South Dakota mayor: ‘She did a Sarah Palin’
Kristi Noem’s stint as governor of South Dakota has come under fresh scrutiny by a former local mayor, who said she “did a ‘Sarah Palin’ and quit,” just days after she was fired from her role as Homeland Security secretary.
Noem, who served as governor from 2019 to 2025, became the first cabinet member to be fired by Trump during his second term.
The embarrassing dismissal came amid growing scrutiny of her aggressive immigration operations across the country, DHS’s purchase of multiple luxury jets for staff, major reductions in FEMA staff, and rumors of an affair with adviser Corey Lewandowski.
Mike Levsen, the former mayor of Aberdeen in Noem’s home state of South Dakota, says her dismissal came as no surprise given her “lack of any significant accomplishment” during her time as governor of the state.
“The Noem governorship covered six years — then did a ‘Sarah Palin’ and quit,” Levsen wrote in a blog post, comparing Noem to the former Alaska Gov. who resigned midway through her first term, citing mounting legal fees being brought by various ethics investigations being brought against her. Palin was Senator John McCain’s running mate during the 2008 presidential election.
Kristi Noem’s tenure as governor has come under criticism following her firing as DHS secretary (AFP/Getty)
“Her legacy was minimal involvement with the Legislature, frequent absences, no transparency, repeated operational screwups, soaring turnover and instances of self-dealing for herself and her family,” Levsen wrote.
Levsen criticized Noem’s Covid-era ad campaign, “Freedom Works Here,” as a “Trump-based ploy that likely contributed to South Dakota’s listing high on some periodical per capita death lists.”
The campaign, which attempted to draw new residents to the state, cost $6.5 million, and South Dakota News Watch reported at the time that there were “hurdles” with the campaign.
Levsen also noted Noem’s “difficult relationship” with tribal governments, as all nine of South Dakota’s indigenous tribes voted in 2024 to ban Noem from their lands, according to CNN.
“Is there a single thing in South Dakota now better as a result of her time in office?” Levsen questioned in the post.
Noem was fired by Trump amidst mounting scrutiny over fallout in Minnesota, following DHS’s disastrous Operation Metro Surge in Minneapolis, which saw two U.S. citizens shot dead in confrontations with federal agents.
Noem described the two Americans, Renee Nicole Good and Alex Pretti, as domestic terrorists. She has refused to apologize for the comments.
She also drew fierce criticism with her purchase of multiple luxury jets, a $220 million ad campaign, gutting FEMA, and her rumored affair with Lewandowski.
Noem was axed by President Donald Trump in a Truth Social post Thursday (Getty)
The final nail in the coffin appears to have been Noem’s congressional testimony this past week, during which lawmakers from both sides of the aisle criticized her management and judgment.
A day after her second hearing, Trump wrote on Truth Social that Noem was out at DHS — and that he was nominating Oklahoma Senator Markwayne Mullin to replace her.
An administration official told NBC News that the president axed Noem due to “a culmination of her many unfortunate leadership failures, including the fallout in Minnesota, the ad campaign, the allegations of infidelity, the mismanagement of her staff, and her constant feuding with the heads of other agencies, including CBP and ICE.”
“Kristi’s drama sadly overshadowed and distracted from the Administration’s extremely popular immigration agenda, which will continue full force,” the official added.
Before she was fired, Noem defended her performance during her hearings on Capitol Hill.
She also drew fire for insisting that the $220 million DHS ad campaign had been launched with the president’s approval, which Trump has denied.
Days after her humiliating firing, Trump named Noem as special envoy for “The Shield of the Americas,” a new security initiative that Trump says will focus on the Western Hemisphere.
South Dakota
SD Lottery Powerball, Lotto America winning numbers for March 7, 2026
The South Dakota Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big.
Here’s a look at March 7, 2026, results for each game:
Winning Powerball numbers from March 7 drawing
17-18-30-50-68, Powerball: 24, Power Play: 3
Check Powerball payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Lotto America numbers from March 7 drawing
06-08-17-18-45, Star Ball: 05, ASB: 05
Check Lotto America payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Dakota Cash numbers from March 7 drawing
01-02-06-22-26
Check Dakota Cash payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Millionaire for Life numbers from March 7 drawing
10-32-45-53-54, Bonus: 02
Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your prize
- Prizes of $100 or less: Can be claimed at any South Dakota Lottery retailer.
- Prizes of $101 or more: Must be claimed from the Lottery. By mail, send a claim form and a signed winning ticket to the Lottery at 711 E. Wells Avenue, Pierre, SD 57501.
- Any jackpot-winning ticket for Dakota Cash or Lotto America, top prize-winning ticket for Lucky for Life, or for the second prizes for Powerball and Mega Millions must be presented in person at a Lottery office. A jackpot-winning Powerball or Mega Millions ticket must be presented in person at the Lottery office in Pierre.
When are the South Dakota Lottery drawings held?
- Powerball: 9:59 p.m. CT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
- Mega Millions: 10 p.m. CT on Tuesday and Friday.
- Lucky for Life: 9:38 p.m. CT daily.
- Lotto America: 9:15 p.m. CT on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
- Dakota Cash: 9 p.m. CT on Wednesday and Saturday.
- Millionaire for Life: 10:15 p.m. CT daily.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a South Dakota editor. You can send feedback using this form.
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