The field has been set and the RMAC basketball tournament kicks off this week for the eight teams remaining in the battle for the top. The third-seed Black Hills State University women's basketball will play host for the first of four games slated on Tuesday, Feb. 28 against the sixth-seeded Metro State University of Denver, with their tipoff slated for 5 p.m.
 
The Yellow Jackets (22-6, 17-5 RMAC) finished the season on a five-game winning streak, including a three-game stretch that saw them win a tiebreaker for the third seed against Adams State (W, 67-60) and two mid-week games on the road against Colorado Christian (W, 70-61) and Chadron State (W, 60-49).
 
Their 17-5 conference mark tied their largest win percentage (77.3 percent) since BHSU integrated into the NCAA DII and the RMAC, with their 2015-16 season also ending with a 17-5 conference mark. Their overall record of 22-6 is the largest the team has had since becoming a DII program in 2010.
 
By season's end, the Yellow Jackets ranked first in the conference in points allowed per game (56.9 ppg), fourth in point margin (5.8), first in three-point percentage (34.2 percent), and third in opponent three-point percentage (29.1 percent). 
 

3-seed BLACK HILLS STATE vs 6-seed MSU Denver  TUESDAY, FEB. 28 // 5 P.M. // SPEARFISH, S.D. // DONALD E. YOUNG CENTER Live Stream / Live Stats / Radio / Tickets / Bracket

 
Tickets for Tuesday's games are now available for purchase HERE.

TUESDAY VS. MSU DENVER
BHSU and MSU Denver have had the opportunity to best the other this season, with the first tilt between these two squads back in December resulting in a commanding 74-56 Yellow Jacket victory in Denver. The Roadrunners, however, flipped the script when they came to Spearfish on Feb. 4 and defeated the Yellow Jackets in a gritty, 62-52 contest.
 
Since that meeting, MSU Denver finished on an even 3-3 stretch, defeating Chadron State (W, 64-53), Colorado Christian (W, 60-52) and Fort Lewis (67-51). They did, however, fall to Westminster (L, 54-49), Colorado Mesa (L, 65-60), and the season finale against Adams State (L, 61-50).
 
MSU Denver, who was last year's conference champion, currently ranks sixth in scoring (63.5 ppg), fifth in points allowed (62.4 ppg), fourth in three-point percentage allowed (29.1 percent), and fourth in turnover margin (1.00).
 
ROADRUNNERS' LAST TIMEOUT
ALAMOSA, Colo. – A tough shooting night eventually caught up with the MSU Denver women's basketball team, as host Adams State came from behind for a 61-50 victory to conclude the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference's regular season.
 
The Roadrunners led 12-5 early and were up 26-20 late in the first half before Adams State was eventually able to chip away.
 
"It was a rough night offensive and it affected us defensively down the stretch," MSU Denver coach Tanya Haave said. "You can't shoot 6 percent (1 of 16) from 3 and 27 percent overall if you want to really have a chance. We did a good job of taking care of the ball in the second half, and give Adams credit, they played well.
 
"But we didn't move very fast without the ball and when we had the ball we were in a rush. It should be the opposite."
 
Kendra Parra led the Roadrunners with 19 points and seven rebounds, and made 8 of 11 free throws. In doing so, she broke Holly Roberts' 32-year-old program record of 158 made free throws in a season. Parra has now made 161. Her point total of 506 this season ranks fourth in program history. (Her scoring average of 18.7 ranks second.)
 
Mikylah Espinosa, Tosjanae Bonds and Brianna Sealy all scored eight. Sealy also had seven rebounds and four steals.
 
The setback didn't affect the Roadrunners' standing for the RMAC Tournament, as they will enter as the sixth seed with records of 15-13 overall and 13-9 in the RMAC.
 
"After everything we've gone through, all our injuries and our youth, we've stayed together and have had a lot of resilience," Haave said. "You have to be pleased with that. We're in the tournament, and now we've got a shot. That was the goal."
 
LAST MATCHUP: BHSU at MSUD (Feb. 3)
Black Hills State University held another home bout against MSU Denver on Saturday afternoon, falling to the Roadrunners in a tough 61-52 matchup at the Donald E. Young Center.
 
The Yellow Jackets (16-5, 11-4 RMAC) went 19-of-49 from the floor and 4-of-18 from beyond the arc while knocking down 10-of-12 from the free throw line. This matchup was a defensive slugfest for both teams: BHSU held five blocks, a season-high, six steals, and 24 rebounds. MSU Denver, however, held 33 rebounds on defense and a dozen steals.
 
Niki Van Wyk found a way to tie her single-game high of 21 points against the Roadrunners tonight, going 7-of-11 from the field and was 50 percent from three. Van Wyk also held an 80 percent mark from the charity stripe. On defense, Van Wyk led the Yellow Jackets with five defensive boards while recording a block.
 
Ellie Moore was the other double-digit offensive player for BHSU, raking in 13 points on 5-of-8 shooting from the field and a 3-of-3 mark at the free throw line. Van Wyk led the team with two blocks while recording a single steal.
 
Both teams came out hitting shot after shot to start the game as four lead changes and three tying scores drew up a 13-12 ball game at the 4:42 mark in the first quarter. MSU Denver began to slowly pull away shortly after, taking a four-point lead by the end of frame number one.
 
The Roadrunners returned to the court in quarter two with a jumper to extend their lead to 22-26, but a 9-3 on shots from Van Wyk and layups from Weathersby tied the game 25-all with 3:42 left in the half. Despite getting the game tied back, MSUD was able to put up a 6-1 rally that was topped off with a layup inside of the final 10 seconds, taking the game into the second half at a 31-26 lead.
 
MSUD continued where they left off in the first half with a 6-0 run to stretch their lead to 37-26. BHSU was able to get the turnovers in the quarter as they forced three turnovers and a steal, but they struggled to connect their shots from the floor up to the halfway point.
 
Both teams went cold until Alessia Capley connected on a layup at the 3:44 mark, which kicked off a 5-0 run to bring BHSU back to a single-digit deficit. Following a Roadrunner three, another Van Wyk layup and a Capley trey kept inching BHSU closer, but the Roadrunners continued to keep the Yellow Jackets at arms-length with another three and layup. An MSUD free throw ended the third quarter with BHSU down 45-38.
 
Van Wyk got BHSU on the board quickly with a three-ball from the top of the key, but the Roadrunners held another 7-2 run to keep BHSU down 52-43. BHSU was able to put up points from the charity stripe as the game entered the final three minutes, but the Roadrunners continued to log enough offensive production to keep BHSU from surmounting the deficit.
 
A TUESDAY BHSU WIN WOULD...
Mean the ladies move onto the semi-final round of the RMAC tournament, which would see them play the winner of Colorado School of Mines versus Colorado Mesa. The highest remaining seed in the tournament at this point will host the semi-finals and championship games on the weekend of March 3. For the women to host, Colorado Mines and Regis would have to fall out of the tournament, leaving BHSU as the top remaining seed in play.
 
Coaches
In his 21st season as head coach of the Yellow Jackets, Mark Nore is the winningest coach in BHSU Athletics history for the women's basketball program with an overall record of 372-228.
 
A three-time RMAC coach of the year, Tanya Haave enters her 13th season as the head coach of the Roadrunners. She is the winningest coach in school history, carrying a 221-124 record as MSU Denver's head coach.