Who? The Coyotes of South Dakota.
What? Charlie seems to have grown up rather organically. And interestingly.
Where? Vermillion, South Dakota, which used to be below the bluffs; after a major flood, they moved up onto the bluff.
When? March 11th, in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.
Why? They won the Summit League tournament.
How? Polly Harrington's 16 points paced six Coyotes in double figures as South Dakota dominated the second half of their 82-71 win over tournament surprise Denver.
Surprise? Predicted to finish third in the conference, they ended up in fourth, six games back of South Dakota State- but they knocked out the Jackrabbits in the semifinals.
RPI: 145
SOS: 172
Record: 19-13 (7-7 Summit)
Good wins: Northern Iowa.
Bad losses: At UC-Irvine?
Who's driving this thing? Amy Williams, since 2012. Came over from NAIA Rogers State.
Extra, Extra! The Argus Leader.
This is not the team from the land of Mount Rushmore that we are accustomed to seeing in the NCAA tournament. The Coyotes prevailed in a semifinal game against South Dakota State's Jackrabbits to ultimately come out with the Summit crown.
Junior guard Nicole Seekamp leads South Dakota with 15.4 points. Classmate Raeshel Contreras adds 13.1 points per game. What intrigues me about them most statistically is that everyone seems to know their job and do their job.
Random thing that amuses me: 5-6 sophomore guard Tia Hemiller, who leads the team in both assists and rebounds. Not the categories you expect to find paired together.