Black Hills State University Athletics

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The lone true freshman in the Yellow Jackets 2025 recruiting class is a face that will be familiar to BHSU fans as Kieffer makes the short drive up the road to Spearfish from Rapid City. The Rapid City Christian High School standout, and one of the top basketball athletes in the state, closed his prep career as a South Dakota Mr. Basketball finalist and was the Rapid City Journal's Best of the West MVP in 2025 after leading the Comets to their second consecutive SDHSAA Class A State Tournament appearance. During the 2024-25 season Kieffer shot the ball at a 40.6 percent clip from beyond the arc as he poured in 18.9 points per game, while also dishing out 4.7 assists and grabbing 4.5 rebounds per game en route to a third place finish at state. A year prior, he averaged 16.7 points, 4.2 assists, and 4.3 rebounds per game as he guided RCCHS to their first state tournament appearance since 2003 as the team finished fourth in Class A. Earning all-tournament honors In both of the state tournament appearances, he scored in double figures in five of his six games, including two 20-point performances and added a double-double as he scored 29 points and added ten boards against Dakota Valley in 2024. As a 1,000-point scorer, he averaged more than 15.0 points and 4.0 assists per game in his sophomore, junior, and senior seasons, and added more than 4.0 rebounds per game in each of his final two seasons for the navy blue and gold ending his prep career by averaging 13.4 points, 3.7 assists, and 3.3 rebounds per game. He was a 2-time SDHSAA All-State selection in Class A, securing first team honors in 2025 and a third team selection in 2024. Kieffer was 4-time All-Black Hills Conference selection in 2025, 2024, 2023, and 2022. Competing against the top players from all three class sizes of prep basketball in The Mount Rushmore State, he scored in double figures (10 points) in the South Dakota Basketball Coaches Association High School All-Star Game at the Sanford Pentagon in 2025. He also played on the AAU circuit for the Sanford Sports Academy. Benson is the son of Joe and Elizabeth Kieffer and has three siblings, Olivia, Sully, and Finn. His father Joe was a multi-sport athlete, playing both basketball and baseball at Augustana University while his mother Elizabeth ran cross country and track for the Vikings. His sister Olivia currently plays basketball at the University of South Dakota.