BROOKINGS — Fresh off another Summit League championship and NCAA tournament appearance, South Dakota State’s men’s basketball team will begin a new era in First Bank and Trust Arena in 2024-25, and the schedule for that first year in the new place has been released.

The Jacks will have something of a ‘soft open’ for the First Bank and Trust on Oct. 30, a Wednesday, when they host Black Hills State, and after playing McNeese State in Sioux Falls at the Sanford Pentagon, they officially christen their new arena when the Jacks host Long Beach State on Nov. 8 (a Friday).

They complete their tour of South Dakota facilities on Nov. 14 when they take on Northern Colorado in Rapid City.

Notable home non-conference games include Southern Miss on Nov. 20 and Eastern Washington on Dec. 7.

The Jacks play two power conference foes on the road, visiting Colorado on Dec. 13 and Alabama on Dec. 29, the latter of which is their final game before Summit League play.

Here’s the complete schedule:

Oct. 30 vs Black Hills State (exhibition)
Nov. 4/ vs McNeese State, Sanford Pentagon, Sioux Falls
Nov. 8 vs Long Beach State
Nov. 14 vs Northern Colorado, Summit Arena, Rapid City
Nov. 18 vs Mount Marty
Nov. 20 vs Southern Miss
Nov. 24 vs Duquesne – Cayman Islands Classic
Nov. 25 vs Boise State or Hampton – Cayman Islands Classic
Nov. 26 vs TBD Cayman Islands Classic
Dec. 2 vs Dakota Wesleyan
Dec. 4 at Montana
Dec. 7 vs Eastern Washington
Dec. 11 at Nevada
Dec. 13 at Colorado
Dec. 19 vs Chadron State
Dec. 29 at Alabama
Jan. 2 vs Denver
Jan. 8 at St. Thomas
Jan. 11 at Omaha
Jan. 16 vs North Dakota
Jan. 18 vs Oral Roberts
Jan. 23 at Kansas City
Jan. 25 vs South Dakota
Jan. 30 at North Dakota State
Feb. 1 at North Dakota
Feb. 6 vs St. Thomas
Feb. 13 vs Omaha
Feb. 15 at South Dakota
Feb. 19 vs North Dakota State
Feb. 22 vs Kansas City
Feb. 27 at Oral Roberts
March 1 at Denver
Summit League tournament: March 5-9

Matt Zimmer is a Sioux Falls native and longtime sports writer. He graduated from Washington High School where he played football, legion baseball and developed his lifelong love of the Minnesota Twins and Vikings. After graduating from St. Cloud State University, he returned to Sioux Falls, and began a long career in amateur baseball and sports reporting. Email Matt at mzimmer@siouxfallslive.com.