South Dakota State to face St. Bonaventure at Pentagon
July 12, 2022
Contact:
Paul Heinert
Sanford Health Media Relations
605-366-2432 / paul.heinert@sanfordhealth.org
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – South Dakota State will face St. Bonaventure in a non-conference men’s basketball game at the Sanford Pentagon on Nov. 15.
Tickets will go on sale at 10 a.m. on Sept. 13.
“We continue to add quality and intriguing Division I matchups to our schedule at the Sanford Pentagon that give fans a chance to experience a combination of new teams and local favorites,” said Jesse Smith, vice president of Sanford Sports. “Both St. Bonaventure and South Dakota State are coming off incredibly successful seasons, and we’re looking forward to them competing against each other on Heritage Court.”
This is the 18th time South Dakota State will play at the Sanford Pentagon. Last season, the Jackrabbits participated in the Crossover Classic for a second straight year, finishing the three-day event with a 2-1 record. A member of the Summit League, SDSU is coming off an historic 30-5 season that featured an undefeated conference regular season (18-0), a Summit League tournament championship and an appearance in the NCAA Tournament for the sixth time.
“To be able to partner with Sanford and play in the Pentagon, which is one of the premier facilities in the country, is another great opportunity,” said Eric Henderson, South Dakota State head coach. “To have our opponent be St. Bonaventure with the history and the tradition that they have, it really suits up well for us. We like to challenge ourselves in the non-conference in order to prepare us for conference play, and that’s exactly what this does.”
This is the first trip to Heritage Court for St. Bonaventure, members of the Atlantic 10 Conference. The Bears finished the 2021-22 season with a 21-10 record and reached the semifinals of the NIT Tournament before falling to eventual champion Xavier.
“We look forward to the opportunity of playing South Dakota State at the Sanford Pentagon,” said Mark Schmidt, St. Bonaventure head coach. “It is a venue which hosts prestigious college basketball events every year, and we’re excited about making our first trip there. We’ll be presented with a great challenge in facing one of the top mid-major programs in the country for another marquee date on our non-conference schedule.”
This will be the first meeting between South Dakota State and St. Bonaventure.
Since opening in 2013, the Sanford Pentagon has hosted 63 Division I men’s college basketball games. The Pentagon has also hosted 16 NCAA Division I women’s college basketball games including a double header last season featuring eventual national champion South Carolina, Final Four participant Louisville, Sweet 16 participant South Dakota and NCAA Tournament qualifier Arizona.
This season Baylor will play Gonzaga in a rematch of the 2021 men’s national championship game and South Carolina, the defending women’s national champions, will face South Dakota State, the defending WNIT champions.
About the Sanford Pentagon
The cornerstone of the Sanford Sports Complex in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, is the Sanford Pentagon, a 160,000-square-foot, five-sided facility featuring nine basketball courts, including the 1950s/1960s-inspired Heritage Court. The venue combines state-of-the-art amenities—including high-definition video boards and executive suites—with period-specific finishes that are a nod to the nostalgic days of basketball.
The 3,200-seat Pentagon is home to Sanford POWER Basketball Academy, Sanford POWER Volleyball Academy, the NBA G League’s Sioux Falls Skyforce, Augustana University men’s and women’s basketball, the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Women’s and Men’s Basketball tournaments and the South Dakota High School Basketball Hall of Fame. For more information, visit sanfordpentagon.com.
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