South Dakota
MBB Preview – South Dakota
The University of Iowa men’s basketball team hosts South Dakota in the final game of the Kenny Arnold Classic on Tuesday at 8 p.m. (CT) on Mediacom Court inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena. The game will be televised on BTN.
• Tickets are $15-25 for adults and $5-10 for youth through the Iowa Athletics Ticket Office.
FOLLOW LIVE
Radio: Tuesday’s game will be broadcast on the Hawkeye Radio Network with Gary Dolphin (play-by-play) and Bobby Hansen (color) on the call. The network includes more than 40 stations that blanket the state of Iowa and include portions of Illinois, Nebraska, Minnesota, Missouri and Wisconsin. The Hawkeye Radio Network includes a 60-minute pregame show.
Television: Tuesday’s game will be televised on BTN with Kevin Kugler (play-by-play) and Jess Settles (color) on the call.
OPENING TIP
- The Hawkeyes won their second straight game, downing Southern, 89-74, on Thursday in Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Iowa has now started 2-0 in four consecutive seasons.
- Iowa has won 91 of its last 97 nonconference home games, dating back to 2012.
- The Hawkeyes’ first three games against Texas A&M Commerce, Southern and South Dakota are part of the Kenny Arnold Classic.
- Senior Payton Sandfort has had 17+ points, 8+ rebounds and 7+ assists in Iowa’s two season-opening victories. He notched his 19th career 20-point game and sixth career double-double in the season opener. He is averaging 18.5 points, 9.5 rebounds and seven assists.
- Sophomore Pryce Sandfort has notched career highs in points, field goals, 3-pointers and rebounds in back-to-back games. He led all scorers with 22 points on 8-of-10 shooting with six 3-pointers and four rebounds in the win over Southern.
- Splash Brothers… Payton and Pryce Sandfort have combined to make 17 3-point field goals in Iowa’s first two games. Pryce has made 9-of-17 attempts; Payton is 8-of-20. They are 1-2 in the Big Ten in 3-pointers made. They are 1-2 in the Big Ten in 3-pointers made.
- Iowa made 18 3-point field goals — its most in a game since the 2022 Big Ten Tournament — in the victory over Southern. The 18 makes are tied for the fifth-most in a game under Fran McCaffery at Iowa.
- One more… Iowa has had more than 20 assists in each of its first two games. The Hawkeyes have assisted on 76.6 percent of their field goals this season.
- Sophomore Owen Freeman is averaging 15 points, 8.5 rebounds and three blocks in two games. He made his first career 3-pointer in Iowa’s win over Southern.
- Josh Dix (honorable mention), Owen Freeman (honorable mention, Big Ten Co-Freshman of the Year) and Payton Sandfort (third team) all earned All-Big Ten honors last season. Sandfort is a preseason first-team All-Big Ten selection in 2024-25.
- Payton Sandfort has been named the John R. Wooden Award preseason Watch List and to the Julius Erving Small Forward of the Year Preseason List.
LAST GAME: IOWA 89, SOUTHERN 74
Iowa shot 53.3 percent from the floor and made 18 3-point field goals in an 89-74 victory over Southern on Nov. 7 in Iowa City. The Hawkeyes had five players land in double figures with sophomore Pryce Sandfort leading the way with a career-high 22 points. He made 8-of-10 field goals in the game, including six 3-pointers.
SPLASH BROTHERS
Brothers Payton and Pryce Sandfort have been deadly from 3-point range for the Hawkeyes. The duo have combined to make 17 3-point field goals in Iowa’s first two games. Pryce has a team-high nine 3-pointers, shooting 52.9 percent (9-of-17) from long range.
• The Sandforts rank No. 1 and No. 2 in the Big Ten in 3-point field goals.
PRYCE’S FAST START
- Sophomore Pryce Sandfort has posted career-highs in scoring, field goals, 3-pointers and rebounds in consecutive games to open the 2024-25 season. The Waukee, Iowa, native made his first eight field goals en route to a 22-point outing in Iowa’s win over Southern on Nov. 7. He made 8-of-10 field goals in the game with six 3-pointers.
- Sandfort is averaging 17.5 points — second on the team — shooting 60 percent from the field and 52.9 percent from long range.
PRESEASON WATCH LISTS
Senior Payton Sandfort has been named to the prestigious John R. Wooden Preseason Watch List. He is one of 50 players named to the list and one of nine from the Big Ten Conference.
• Sandfort is also one of 20 players named to the Julius Erving Small Forward of the Year Preseason Watch List. It is his second straight year that he has been on the list that for an award that recognizes the best small forwards in men’s college basketball.
1-2 PG PUNCH
Iowa’s point guard duo of Brock Harding and Drew Thelwell are averaging 16.5 points and eight assists in two games this season.
• Thelwell has landed in double figures in both games, where he is averaging 11 points. Harding has 12 assists to one turnover in two games.
18 FROM DISTANCE
The Hawkeyes made 18 3-point field goals in the victory over Southern on Nov. 7. They are the most for the program since the 2022 Big Ten Tournament and tied for the fifth-most under head coach Fran McCaffery at Iowa.
• Iowa had seven different players make at least one 3-pointer in the victory, including Owen Freeman’s first career 3.
• As a team, Iowa averages 14 3-pointers per game, while shooting 40.6 percent. The team ranks second in the Big Ten and fifth nationally in 3-pointers per game.
South Dakota
Political Pulse: South Dakota Senate Majority Leader Jim Mehlhaff on data centers, property taxes and more
RAPID CITY, S.D. (KOTA) – State Senate Majority Leader Jim Mehlhaff joined Political Pulse over the weekend.
Mehlhaff weighed in on property tax proposals, data centers, and effort to repeal the death penalty and speculation that Kristi Noem could run for Senate.
The interviewed was taped on Saturday.
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Copyright 2026 KOTA. All rights reserved.
South Dakota
These 15 South Dakota counties will see DUI checkpoints this month
The monthly law enforcement effort helps to reduce alcohol-related deaths on the road.
The reason drinking among adults hit a record low
Fewer Americans are drinking alcohol, and more now see even moderate drinking as a health risk, according to a new Gallup poll.
unbranded – Lifestyle
The South Dakota Department of Public Safety is raising awareness this month on the dangers of drinking and driving.
Sobriety checkpoints take place statewide every month, usually hitting about 15 counties, in hopes of reminding motorists to “make responsible choices and avoid driving after drinking alcohol, whether or not a checkpoint is planned in their area,” says DPS communications director Brad Reiners.
DPS also announces ahead of time which counties will be monitored, most often Codington, Lincoln, Meade, Minnehaha and Pennington counties.
What is a sobriety checkpoint?
A sobriety checkpoint is a law enforcement effort that stops vehicles at pre-determined locations to identify and arrest impaired drivers as necessary.
These police stops are not based on unrelated violations of the law (ie., speeding, reckless driving, no seatbelt). Rather, officers are stopping any vehicle in a set pattern in a highly visible location that a driver will approach and must comply with.
Beyond arrests for driving under the influence (DUIs), including breathalyzer tests (PBTs) to determine blood alcohol level (BAC) as needed, the systematic effort is designed to “reduce impaired driving and improve roadway safety,” Reiners said.
South Dakota counties where checkpoints will take place in March include:
- Beadle
- Brookings
- Brown
- Clay
- Codington
- Day
- Hughes
- Hutchinson
- Jones
- Lawrence
- Lincoln
- Lyman
- Meade
- Minnehaha
- Pennington
How many sobriety checkpoints took place in Minnehaha County in 2025?
Other than confirming counties ahead of time, Reiners says time, day and exact location of each checkpoint cannot be confirmed.
Here’s a look at totals from sobriety checkpoints in Minnehaha County in 2025.
Reiners says the number of vehicle stops is merely based on how many happen to drive through a checkpoint that day:
- January: 30 vehicles stopped, 3 PBTs, no DUI arrests
- February: 18 vehicles stopped, 1 PBT, no DUI arrests
- March: 150 vehicles stopped, 9 PBTs, no DUI arrests
- August: 49 vehicles stopped, 1 PBT, no DUI arrests
- September: 105 vehicles stopped, 14 PBTs, no DUI arrests
- November: 63 vehicles stopped, 2 PBTs, 2 DUI arrests
How many fatal, alcohol-related car accidents are there in South Dakota?
According to the South Dakota Department of Health, among 365 alcohol-related deaths in 2024, 19% were because of a transportation/machinery accident, the second-most common cause.
The leading cause of alcohol-related deaths in 2024 was poisoning/toxic effects, at 24%.
Counties that most often experience overall alcohol-related deaths include Buffalo, Mellette, Corson, Oglala Lakota and Dewey counties.
Overall, males make up 65% of alcohol-related deaths in South Dakota from 2015-2024, almost two times higher than the female rate, with ages 30-69 at the highest risk.
Operation: Prairie Thunder not involved in sobriety checkpoints
DPS officials say the S.D. Office of Highway Patrol, the South Dakota Highway Patrol (SDHP) and local law enforcement agencies support DUI checkpoints, which are funded by the South Dakota Office of Highway Safety (SDHS).
Although Operation: Prairie Thunder (OPT) recently completed its 11th saturation patrol in Watertown on Feb. 26-27 – missions that bring together the SDHP with the city, county and federal law enforcement partners – SDHS officials stated last week that “sobriety checkpoints are not conducted as part of Operation: Prairie Thunder.”
Rather, OPT consists of targeted saturation patrols focused on criminal activity in a variety of communities.
Since its inception in August of last year, here’s a look at where total numbers stand for OPT, provided by the DPS.
Ongoing Operation: Prairie Thunder running totals
- 443 arrests
- 281 individuals in custody with a drug charge
- 162 in custody without a drug charge
- 473 individuals with a drug charge
- 192 charged and released
Operation: Prairie Thunder criminal drug apprehension totals
- 1,109 drug charges
- 318 felony drug charges
- 791 misdemeanor drug charges
- 81 felony warrants
- 168 misdemeanor warrants
Operation: Prairie Thunder ICE contacts
- 93 contacted
- 95 interviewed
- 71 in custody
- 9 apprehended for cartel / gang
- 10 identified for cartel / gang
- No human trafficking arrests
- No recoveries
Operation: Prairie Thunder traffic enforcement
- 42 DUIs
- 5 reckless driving
- 2,244 citations
- 2,725 warnings
The South Dakota governor’s office announced last December that operations will continue into 2026.
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.
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