The Georgetown women’s basketball team (1-0) will return to the court tonight when it takes on South Dakota State (0-2) in Brookings, S.D. Coming off of a thrilling 82-78 win over Richmond, the Hoyas will look to continue their success against the Jackrabbits.

South Dakota State opened its season on a two-game road trip. The Jackrabbits were severely outmatched against Brigham Young, falling 81-53 in their season opener. In its second game, South Dakota State lost a heartbreaker to Creighton, giving up the lead in the final minute after dominating for the majority of the game.

“We know we are really going to be challenged against South Dakota State,” Head Coach Jim Lewis said. “We are not only on the road for the first time, but it is also their home opener, and they are coming in 0-2. All the enthusiasm that is associated with that — we really need to be ready to play.”

This will be the second-ever meeting between the teams. In the teams’ first-ever meeting last season, the Jackrabbits handed the Hoyas their first home loss of the season. South Dakota State roared back from a 14-point deficit to grab the 64-58 victory. The Hoyas have put that loss behind them and are simply focusing on playing their game, according to Lewis.

“Our coaches have done a really good job focusing on the moment and making sure that our players focus on the moment,” Lewis said. “The rosters are different, and the playing style, for us at least, is different, too. Revenge, those kinds of word, that’s not it. We are just out to win another game.”

Lewis believes that playing the Jackrabbits last year does give the Hoyas an advantage this year.

“We have already constructed our scouting report with an eye towards … what they did against us last year,” Lewis said. “[The seniors] can tell the story to the freshmen about how a player may look like this on film, but in person, they are really a lot better. So against [South Dakota State], we aren’t having any slippage of knowledge.”

Despite losing its leading scorer, guard Ashley Eide, to graduation, South Dakota State is still a formidable opponent. Last season, the Jackrabbits won their fifth consecutive Summit League Championship, and prior to this season they were named the preseason favorite to win the Summit League.

“They are a real good shooting team and are a veteran team. They are an excellent team that has been successful in the past,” Lewis said. “Number 24, junior Megan Waytashek, is a six-footer — she is really their go-to player. She is someone that is very versatile. But a lot of their team is comprised of players that can play multiple positions.”

This season, Waytashek has averaged just near 12 points a game, and a strong team defense will be key to limiting Waytashek and defeating South Dakota State.

“We certainly respect and know [South Dakota State] has outstanding individual talent, but we are going to really have to concentrate on not taking on a personal one-on-one challenge on defense,” Lewis said. “We need to trust the team concept to make us affective. Someone will beat us individually on defense, but they cannot beat all five of us. “
Lewis believes that if the Hoyas start strong they will be able to defeat the Jackrabbits.

“[The difference] will be if we get a really good start. We need to set the tone. From the jump, we need to show attitude and aggressiveness and try to impose our will on South Dakota State. Hopefully we can sustain this throughout the 40 minutes,” Lewis said. “If we can start off that way we will make them climb uphill. … If we are Georgetown, I like our chances.”

The Hoyas take on the Jackrabbits in Brookings, S.D., tonight at 8 p.m. Georgetown will be back at McDonough Arena Sunday as they play host to California at 3 p.m.