GAME NOTES: The two-day quarterfinal round of the Summit League Tournament continues on Sunday as the fifth-seeded South Dakota Coyotes take on the fourth-seeded IUPU-Fort Wayne Mastodons at Denny Sanford PREMIER Center.

The winner of this clash moves on to the semifinal round of the tournament on Monday.

South Dakota is hot entering the conference tournament. The Coyotes won five of their last six games to end the regular season, with a season-ending defeat over top-ranked South Dakota State to cap a relatively successful campaign for South Dakota. The Coyotes ended the regular season with a 9-7 mark in the Summit League.

IPFW managed to put a stop to a two-game slide in the season finale against Western Illinois, 84-64, to give the team a boost of confidence heading into the postseason. The Mastodons also finished the regular season at 9-7 against conference competition, and a 16-13 overall record.

The teams met twice during the regular season, with each side winning once on the road. The Coyotes took a 64-62 victory in Fort Wayne, while the Mastodons won in Vermillion, 66-55.

South Dakota performed extremely well against South Dakota State to close out the regular season. The Coyotes netted 47.2 percent of their shots from the floor, and played even better on the defensive end by holding the Jackrabbits to 33.9 percent shooting. South Dakota State had something to play for as well, with a shot at the regular-season crown on the line. The Coyotes were led by Tre Burnette's double-double of 19 points and 13 rebounds, while Casey Kasperbauer added 17 points and Brandon Bos chipped in with 12 points, five rebounds and four assists. South Dakota buried 10-of-20 from 3-point distance in the team's win.

Tyler Larson netted eight points in the team's win over its in-state rival, which affected his team-leading scoring average, but not enough to drop him from the top spot. Larson paces the squad with 14.4 ppg and 7.7 rpg, adding in another team-best with 89 assists. Bos chips in 13.4 ppg, and Kasperbauer contributes 10.0 ppg for the Coyotes, who are netting 69.7 ppg this season. The team's defense has been the main issue, allowing the same scoring average to opponents that it racks up offensively, though opponents are connecting on nearly 45 percent of their shots from the floor. It's the seventh-worst scoring defense in the Summit League.

IPFW made quick work of Western Illinois in the season finale last Saturday, as the Mastodons buried 55.4 percent of their shots from the field to gain an easy advantage. IPFW hit on 12-of-24 from 3-point range, yet missed 11 of the team's 21 total free-throws in the victory. Joe Edwards netted 23 points to lead the Mastodons in the contest, while both Mo Evans and Isaiah McCray added 16 points apiece. Evans also tallied seven boards to match a team high in the win. Max Landis scored 10 points, and Michael Calder chipped in another 10 to help out the cause in his team's 20-point victory.

Leading scorer Steve Forbes only netted five points in the team's huge victory over Western Illinois, but his scoring services weren't needed against the Leathernecks. Still, he heads into the postseason netting a team-high 13.9 ppg with 6.1 rpg to pace the squad on the boards. Edwards contributes 11.8 ppg, and Evans adds in 10.2 ppg to round out a trio of double-digit scorers for the Mastodons, who are collecting 69.7 ppg this season. Defensively, the team heads into the tournament surrendering 66.1 ppg to opponents, who are shooting 44.2 ppg from the floor. In IPFW's last game against the Coyotes, Forbes netted 21 points to pace his team in the 11-point road win.

South Dakota may have turned a few heads this season as the team was able to put together a solid lineup. But Fort Wayne has always been a steady contender, especially in the postseason. The Mastodons will be looking to get back to the Summit title game, where they lost last season to North Dakota State.