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Feb. 11—MITCHELL — The start of regional playoff basketball is less than two weeks away, meaning time is running out on teams to climb the standings or solidify their positions before the postseason.
With several top girls and boys basketball teams set to converge on the Corn Palace this weekend for the annual Dakota Wesleyan University Classic, high-profile matchups poised to influence the final standings will be the center of attention.
Here's a closer look at eight of the top matchups set for Friday and Saturday at the Corn Palace.
Note: All records, standings and seed-point values referenced in this report were taken from the GoBound.com database on Wednesday, Feb. 11. Poll rankings were used from the most recent release on Feb. 9.
It's a big West River matchup taking place at the Corn Palace in game No. 4 on Friday. The Eagles are No. 9 overall in Class B for seed points, while Lemmon is at No. 20.
Both Lemmon and Wall are 13-5 on the year, and this is the penultimate game of the regular season for both squads. The Cowgirls recently lost to both Herreid/Selby Area and Harding County, and a victory over Wall would be redeeming for their postseason resume.
Wall has three losses this season to Class B teams, all of whom will also be in Mitchell on Friday: No. 1 Lyman, No. 3 Bennett County and No. 5 Ethan. On opponent winning percentage, it's been the toughest schedule in Class B girls basketball. Other than those games, the Eagles have won their last eight contests.
Hamlin is the No. 1 team in Class A in terms of seed points with a 14-1 record, while Sioux Falls Christian is at No. 4 in seed points, and both teams lead their respective region standings.
Both sets of Chargers are meeting up for the fourth time since the start of 2024, with Sioux Falls Christian winning the last three matchups, including a 44-33 win in the 2025 Class A state semifinals in Spearfish on the way to a state title. This season, SFC is 15-3 and has won nine of its last 10 games entering Friday.
Hamlin's only loss of the season came on Jan. 17 at the Corn Palace against Wagner. Since then, Hamlin has won six games in a row, including two over No. 3-ranked Lennox, but this is the start of a tough five-game stretch to close the season, which also includes No. 7-ranked Clark/Willow Lake.
The implications of this game are obvious right at the top of the Class B seed-point standings and the South Dakota Prep Media poll. The Raiders are No. 1 in the media rankings and No. 2 in the seed-point standings, while the Trojans are No. 1 in the standings and No. 2 in the poll. Both teams are 15-1, they both score in the high 50s per game and allow less than 35 points per game on defense. The winner of this one has a great chance at the No. 1 seed for the postseason, although Lyman follows this game with a road trip to 14-2 Bennett County on Tuesday.
Friday night's Palace finale brings plenty of intrigue when the Warriors and Rustlers take the floor. Bennett County, which won last year's Class B state title from the No. 5 seed position, has been hot again this season since losing a pair of games to Class A foes Lakota Tech and Mahpiya Luta, ripping off 12 wins in a row. The matchup with Ethan is Bennett County's first game against an East River opponent this season, but the Warriors' schedule has been solid, with an opponent winning percentage ranking in the top-20 in Class B.
For Ethan, they are No. 5 in seed points with a 15-1 record, and that only loss came to Class A Wagner. Since then, the Rustlers have won 10 games in a row. The matchup with Bennett County is a key showdown in terms of the Region 3B playoffs, which has 17-0 Colman-Egan as the No. 1 seed, Ethan at No. 2, followed by 15-2 Chester at No. 3 and Sanborn Central/Woonsocket is fourth at 13-4. A win keeps Ethan in the mix for the No. 1 seed in the region or at least in a top-two slot.
By opponent win percentage, these teams have faced the first and third-most difficult schedules in the class to date. While much of the attention at the top of Class A this season has gone to the triumvirate of West Central, Sioux Falls Christian and Clark/Willow Lake, Hamlin is still in the mix with that group. The Chargers are No. 3 in the Class A seed-point standings at 13-2.
Pine Ridge temporarily fell out of the picture following an up-and-down start punctuated by a Hoop City Classic loss to West Central that dropped the Thorpes to 4-5. Since then, Pine Ridge has won seven of eight and climbed back to the No. 12 position in the Class A seed-point standings with notable wins over Mahpiya Luta and Class B Marty and Freeman.
A Hamlin win can keep the Chargers comfortably inside the conversation for a top-four postseason seed, while a Pine Ridge victory would further aid its climb, perhaps even landing the Thorpes inside the top-10.
A rematch of the 2025 Class B state tournament fifth-place game features two surging squads, with 21 straight wins between the Flyers and Eagles. Freeman and Wall are also separated by thin margins both in the media poll and seed-point standings. The Flyers are No. 4 in the poll and No. 7 in the standings, as the Eagles are No. 5 in the poll and No. 6 in the standings. A loss this late in the season would likely be damaging to the chances of nabbing a coveted top-four seed position.
Freeman, which has won a Class B-best 12 games in a row, is making its fourth trip to the Corn Palace this season, having gone 2-1 previously.
This contest pits two of the last four teams left in pursuit of a state championship a year ago against one another, and both are looking to pick up a signature, confidence-boosting win ahead of the postseason.
After an 11-0 start, Viborg-Hurley picked up back-to-back losses late in January that cast some doubt on its place in the Class B power structure. Yet the Cougars' place atop the seed-point standings hasn't wavered.
Even with a 12-4 record, Wessington Springs is No. 17 in the crowded seed-point standings, but a win over the top team would be a welcome boost. That includes within the Spartans' own region, where they are currently slotted fifth behind De Smet, Castlewood, Estelline/Hendricks and Deubrook Area. Despite their standing, the Spartans remain highly regarded by media poll voters, who rank them No. 8.
Though separated by just 10 miles, this will be a rare meeting between the Trojans and Rustlers on the hardwood. The MaxPreps high school sports database has no record of a matchup since at least 2005-06.
Though ranked No. 7 in the media poll, Parkston is No. 5 in the seed-point standings, and a win would bolster the chances of sneaking into the top four. The Trojans are 14-3 on the year, with all three losses to Class A teams. Saturday will mark Parkston's sixth game against Class B opposition this season, with two of the previous five coming at the Corn Palace.
Ethan has an 11-5 record but is 22nd in the seed-point standings. With a win, the Rustlers can put themselves within striking distance of a top-16 position overall, but perhaps more importantly, would creep closer to the No. 2 seed within a highly competitive Region 3B.
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With several top girls and boys basketball teams set to converge on the Corn Palace this weekend for the annual Dakota Wesleyan University Classic, high-profile matchups poised to influence the final standings will be the center of attention.
Here's a closer look at eight of the top matchups set for Friday and Saturday at the Corn Palace.
Note: All records, standings and seed-point values referenced in this report were taken from the GoBound.com database on Wednesday, Feb. 11. Poll rankings were used from the most recent release on Feb. 9.
It's a big West River matchup taking place at the Corn Palace in game No. 4 on Friday. The Eagles are No. 9 overall in Class B for seed points, while Lemmon is at No. 20.
Both Lemmon and Wall are 13-5 on the year, and this is the penultimate game of the regular season for both squads. The Cowgirls recently lost to both Herreid/Selby Area and Harding County, and a victory over Wall would be redeeming for their postseason resume.
Wall has three losses this season to Class B teams, all of whom will also be in Mitchell on Friday: No. 1 Lyman, No. 3 Bennett County and No. 5 Ethan. On opponent winning percentage, it's been the toughest schedule in Class B girls basketball. Other than those games, the Eagles have won their last eight contests.
Hamlin is the No. 1 team in Class A in terms of seed points with a 14-1 record, while Sioux Falls Christian is at No. 4 in seed points, and both teams lead their respective region standings.
Both sets of Chargers are meeting up for the fourth time since the start of 2024, with Sioux Falls Christian winning the last three matchups, including a 44-33 win in the 2025 Class A state semifinals in Spearfish on the way to a state title. This season, SFC is 15-3 and has won nine of its last 10 games entering Friday.
Hamlin's only loss of the season came on Jan. 17 at the Corn Palace against Wagner. Since then, Hamlin has won six games in a row, including two over No. 3-ranked Lennox, but this is the start of a tough five-game stretch to close the season, which also includes No. 7-ranked Clark/Willow Lake.
The implications of this game are obvious right at the top of the Class B seed-point standings and the South Dakota Prep Media poll. The Raiders are No. 1 in the media rankings and No. 2 in the seed-point standings, while the Trojans are No. 1 in the standings and No. 2 in the poll. Both teams are 15-1, they both score in the high 50s per game and allow less than 35 points per game on defense. The winner of this one has a great chance at the No. 1 seed for the postseason, although Lyman follows this game with a road trip to 14-2 Bennett County on Tuesday.
Friday night's Palace finale brings plenty of intrigue when the Warriors and Rustlers take the floor. Bennett County, which won last year's Class B state title from the No. 5 seed position, has been hot again this season since losing a pair of games to Class A foes Lakota Tech and Mahpiya Luta, ripping off 12 wins in a row. The matchup with Ethan is Bennett County's first game against an East River opponent this season, but the Warriors' schedule has been solid, with an opponent winning percentage ranking in the top-20 in Class B.
For Ethan, they are No. 5 in seed points with a 15-1 record, and that only loss came to Class A Wagner. Since then, the Rustlers have won 10 games in a row. The matchup with Bennett County is a key showdown in terms of the Region 3B playoffs, which has 17-0 Colman-Egan as the No. 1 seed, Ethan at No. 2, followed by 15-2 Chester at No. 3 and Sanborn Central/Woonsocket is fourth at 13-4. A win keeps Ethan in the mix for the No. 1 seed in the region or at least in a top-two slot.
By opponent win percentage, these teams have faced the first and third-most difficult schedules in the class to date. While much of the attention at the top of Class A this season has gone to the triumvirate of West Central, Sioux Falls Christian and Clark/Willow Lake, Hamlin is still in the mix with that group. The Chargers are No. 3 in the Class A seed-point standings at 13-2.
Pine Ridge temporarily fell out of the picture following an up-and-down start punctuated by a Hoop City Classic loss to West Central that dropped the Thorpes to 4-5. Since then, Pine Ridge has won seven of eight and climbed back to the No. 12 position in the Class A seed-point standings with notable wins over Mahpiya Luta and Class B Marty and Freeman.
A Hamlin win can keep the Chargers comfortably inside the conversation for a top-four postseason seed, while a Pine Ridge victory would further aid its climb, perhaps even landing the Thorpes inside the top-10.
A rematch of the 2025 Class B state tournament fifth-place game features two surging squads, with 21 straight wins between the Flyers and Eagles. Freeman and Wall are also separated by thin margins both in the media poll and seed-point standings. The Flyers are No. 4 in the poll and No. 7 in the standings, as the Eagles are No. 5 in the poll and No. 6 in the standings. A loss this late in the season would likely be damaging to the chances of nabbing a coveted top-four seed position.
Freeman, which has won a Class B-best 12 games in a row, is making its fourth trip to the Corn Palace this season, having gone 2-1 previously.
This contest pits two of the last four teams left in pursuit of a state championship a year ago against one another, and both are looking to pick up a signature, confidence-boosting win ahead of the postseason.
After an 11-0 start, Viborg-Hurley picked up back-to-back losses late in January that cast some doubt on its place in the Class B power structure. Yet the Cougars' place atop the seed-point standings hasn't wavered.
Even with a 12-4 record, Wessington Springs is No. 17 in the crowded seed-point standings, but a win over the top team would be a welcome boost. That includes within the Spartans' own region, where they are currently slotted fifth behind De Smet, Castlewood, Estelline/Hendricks and Deubrook Area. Despite their standing, the Spartans remain highly regarded by media poll voters, who rank them No. 8.
Though separated by just 10 miles, this will be a rare meeting between the Trojans and Rustlers on the hardwood. The MaxPreps high school sports database has no record of a matchup since at least 2005-06.
Though ranked No. 7 in the media poll, Parkston is No. 5 in the seed-point standings, and a win would bolster the chances of sneaking into the top four. The Trojans are 14-3 on the year, with all three losses to Class A teams. Saturday will mark Parkston's sixth game against Class B opposition this season, with two of the previous five coming at the Corn Palace.
Ethan has an 11-5 record but is 22nd in the seed-point standings. With a win, the Rustlers can put themselves within striking distance of a top-16 position overall, but perhaps more importantly, would creep closer to the No. 2 seed within a highly competitive Region 3B.
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