Leatherneck Nation

Thought I would start this one up for all things Tournament and Sioux Falls related.

Today (Friday, 2/27) is last day for students to sign up for trip to Sioux Falls. Don't let me scare you off, but arena event staff willing, I will be joining you in the rowdy section for all WIU games. For more info:
http://www.goleathernecks.com/news/2015 ... ath=mbball

The Summit League is rolling out a free mobile app to help keep abreast of tournament events:
http://www.thesummitleague.org/sports/a ... 022515_app

The city of Sioux Falls has created social media contest around the tournament. Enter (tweet, facebook, instagram) for a chance to win a GoPro. What better way to pass the time on the long boring stretches of I80 and I29?
http://roadtosiouxfalls.com/

Unless I am looking at something wrong, there is no way we do not play South Dakota State in the opening round. The one team we don't want to play. Sadly I don't see any way we beat them.

However this tournament may be a little wide open than years past when South Dakota State has a good team.

I think oral roberts, North Dakota state, and ipfw all have a chance to win the tournament this year.

wiu2008 wrote:Unless I am looking at something wrong, there is no way we do not play South Dakota State in the opening round. The one team we don't want to play. Sadly I don't see any way we beat them.

However this tournament may be a little wide open than years past when South Dakota State has a good team.

I think oral roberts, North Dakota state, and ipfw all have a chance to win the tournament this year.

I would throw USD and even Denver in the mix of potentials. Those two can be scary good if they are shooting lights out and they have some players than can do it. USD fans will also bring lots of energy to the Premier Center which could make a huge difference against a team like IPFW or ORU. I will be very surprised if we dont see at least one shocker in the first round. Shocking the world three nights in a row is lot tougher.

If they did not have the 35 second clock, this would be a good game to go with some "freezing" of the ball. SDSU will need to have an off night shooting and turnover-wise for us to stay in it. Do we have the kind of defense that could force that to happen? Have not seen it yet. In past years when I have watched us play SDSU, I tell myself that our five guys on the court are quicker than their five as a whole but we end up playing a game that suits them more than us. Their steps and actions are simply more productive. This year, they do have some nice quickness on the perimeter so now it is even tougher to match up with them.

The opening day attendance could be reaching new numbers this year at the Denny Sanford Premier Center. Originally only the lower bowl was to be used for seating. It was announced that the curtains will be lifted for the first day's games and they are now selling tickets for the upper level in a few sections on one side. Individual session tickets are $15 for those seats. The lower bowl seats 7000 plus. This could be one of the noisier opening days for the SLT.

In first round, Western Illinois men face South Dakota State on Saturday, March 7th at 6pm. Complete bracket/schedule/TV info is below:

http://static.psbin.com/r/c/mnh99ea5lwp ... racket.pdf

The Western women will square off against IUPUI on Sunday, March 8th at Noon. Women's bracket below:

http://static.psbin.com/i/3/nfye6j0b8e4 ... racket.pdf

Nice to see that all games are televised on Midco and/or ESPN*.

Might start thinking of a sign or something to wave. The following come to mind:

Hi T DEnny. Send Pocket chaNge.


Dear God,
Early
Spring
Please
Now

sealhall74 wrote:Nice to see that all games are televised on Midco and/or ESPN.

Last year's Quarterfinals and Semifinals were on one of the Fox College Sports channels.

Moving them to ESPN3 should make them more available for everyone.

Roundball Roulette Summit League tournament brackets are now available. All picks must be posted NLT Noon Saturday. Payout is $50 minimum + $10 for each week played during regular season. New players welcome.

Submit your picks or register by clicking on the Roundball Roulette> link at top of this window.

Between Hoops sessions, what to do, what to do?

The weather for the entire tournament is really looking up:
http://www.weather.com/weather/tenday/l ... D0315:1:US

You might want to fuel up at these restaurants (I can't vouch for any of them, but Minerva's is on my list for this trip):
https://www.google.com/search?q=sioux+f ... =1&tbm=lcl

BTW, Food Network's Alton Brown recently made a stop in Sioux Falls on his Edible Inevitable Show tour. Sanaa's from above made his list too:
http://altonbrown.com/ab-road-eats-sioux-falls/

The Sioux Falls YMCA offers day passes ($12):
http://www.siouxfallsymca.org/

For you snow lovers, there is even some skiing (never done cross-country before but I am going to give it a try) and tubing for you. They also have Saturday specials for college students with ID:
http://www.greatbearpark.com/

Minerva's will be a good choice. It is great food and atmosphere. You could find many fine places to eat within 3 blocks of that downtown location. My kids send me Minerva gift cards as they will not get lost. Spezia and Grille 26 are more fine dining. If you are looking for a good noon meal on Monday or Tuesday, the Ramkota is just north a mile of the Premier Center on Maple St. which is off Russell St. Finding a restaurant is not difficult in Sioux Falls.