January 8, 2026
THIS WEEK'S PREVIEW
MADISON, S.D. - The Dakota State University Trojan women's basketball team (12-3 overall record, 7-2 Frontier Conference, No. 4 ranking in the NAIA Women's Basketball Coaches' Top 25 poll), concludes their season-long six-game Frontier Conference road trip with a pair of games in North Dakota this weekend.
Dakota State heads to BSC Armory (1601 Edwards Ave.) Friday evening for a league contest against Bismarck State (N.D.) (2-11 overall record, 2-7 Frontier Conference). Tip-off is set for 5 p.m. in Bismarck, N.D.
The Trojans close their road trip Saturday evening, visiting Dickinson State (N.D.) (4-9 overall record, 2-7 Frontier) at Scott Gymnasium (1104 2
nd Street W). The game is set for 6 p.m. (Central Time)/5 p.m. (Mountain Time) in Dickinson, N.D.
QUICK HITS
*Dakota State continues their action on the road in the Frontier Conference play, concluding their six-game road trip which began last month on Dec. 12-13 at MSU-Northern and Providence (Mont.).
*The Trojans look to swing back in the winning column after falling short in a pair of games on the road last weekend. DSU fell to No. 24 Carroll (Mont.) 65-63 on Jan. 2 and No. 17 Rocky Mountain (Mont.) 55-52 on Jan. 3.
*Dakota State will be playing their first Frontier Conference meeting with Bismarck State (N.D.) on Friday. DSU had previously played against Bismarck Junior College during the 1980's.
*Dakota State and Dickinson State (N.D.) were former members of two different leagues before joining the Frontier Conference, the Dakota Athletic Conference and the North Star Athletic Association.
*DSU returns home next weekend (Jan. 16-17) for the first time since Dec. 6. The Trojans also host their annual Ag Ball contest versus Montana Tech on Jan. 16 at DSU Fieldhouse.
2025-26 STATS COMPARISON
|
|
|
|
| Scoring Offense |
67.0 |
80.5 |
58.8 |
| Scoring Defense |
84.7 |
61.7 |
70.9 |
| Scoring Margin |
-17.7 |
18.7 |
-12.1 |
| Field Goal % |
.323 |
.436 |
.411 |
| Field Goal Def. % |
.471 |
.359 |
.423 |
| Free Throw % |
.712 |
.613 |
.761 |
| Rebounds Per Game |
34.2 |
42.5 |
33.8 |
| Rebounds Margin |
-10.6 |
4.6 |
-2.3 |
| 3-point FGs Made Per Game |
10.7 |
9.9 |
5.5 |
| 3-point FG % |
.287 |
.322 |
.310 |
| Assists Per Game |
11.1 |
17.8 |
12.5 |
| Blocks Per Game |
0.9 |
4.5 |
3.2 |
SCOUTING THE MYSTICS
Bismarck State (N.D.) enters their first-year membership with the NAIA and the Frontier Conference this season. BSC was a former member of the National Junior College Association (NJCAA) before making their transition to the NAIA during the 2025-26 academic season.
Jason Harris is in his 12th non-consecutive year coaching basketball at Bismarck State. This is his second year leading the Mystic women's basketball team since his return to Bismarck State, where he coached women's basketball and softball from 2014-17. Prior to 2017, Harris served as the head men's basketball coach at Bismarck State.
BSC opened with three straight road losses before opening their first-ever Frontier Conference with a 93-88 home victory over No. 17 ranked Rocky Mountain (Mont.) on Nov. 21. The Mystics fell in the next eight games before snapping their losing skid with an 87-74 home victory over Montana Western on Jan. 3.
The Mystics, who are 2-11 overall record and 2-7 record in the Frontier Conference play, are 2-2 at home at BSC Armory, while being 0-9 record on the road prior to this weekend's games. Both teams will meet in the regular season finale at DSU Fieldhouse for the second Frontier Conference meeting on Feb. 21.
Dakota State had faced Bismarck State Junior College in the 1980's.
SCOUTING THE BLUE HAWKS
Eric Nelson is entering his seventh season as the head women's basketball coach for Dickinson State (N.D.). He led the Blue Hawks to the conference semifinals three times in the past four seasons in the former North Star Athletic Association postseason tournament.
Dickinson State began their season with a pair of setbacks on the road at No. 7 ranked Lewis-Clark State (Idaho) before winning a pair of games in the Bellevue (Neb.) Hampton Inn & Suites Downtown Classic. The Blue Hawks defeated Midland (Neb.) and Tabor (Kan.) on Nov. 7-8.
DiSU dropped their first two games in the new and expanded conference, falling to No. 14 Carroll (Mont.) and No. 17 Rocky Mountain (Mont.). The Blue Hawks earned their first league win of the season after defeating their traveling partner Bismarck State 93-85 on Nov. 28.
Dickinson State closed the month of December by going winless in four regular-season contests and an exhibition game at NCAA Division I North Dakota. DiSU opened the New Year 2026 with a 63-60 victory over Montana Western on Jan. 2, before falling to No. 14 Montana Tech 75-59 on Jan. 3.
Dakota State had earned the season series sweep over Dickinson State for eight consecutive seasons. The Trojans earned their three-game season series sweep over the Blue Hawks last season, including a pair of games held at Scott Gymnasium in Dickinson, N.D.
The Trojans had scored at least 80 points 17 times in the previous 21 meetings with the Blue Hawks, including all three meetings last season.
LAST TIME OUT
Dakota State (S.D.) returned to action last weekend for the first time since Dec. 13 after they defeated (RV) Providence (Mont.) 69-62 in Great Falls, Mont. The Trojans faced a pair of NAIA's Top 25 teams as they continued their six-game road stretch in the Frontier Conference play.
Dakota State kicked off the New Year 2026 on Jan. 2 with a trip to PE Center in Helena, Mont., taking on No. 24 ranked Carroll (Mont.). The Fighting Saints held a slim 13-12 lead after the first quarter. DSU then outscored CC 17-9 in the second quarter to take a 29-22 halftime lead. Carroll went on a 25-14 third quarter scoring run to take a 47-43 lead. The Saints then took a nine-point lead in the fourth quarter before DSU rallied to tie the game at 63-63 with less than 30 seconds in the game. CC hit a layup with .4 seconds left and held off Dakota State for a 65-63 victory.
The Trojans then traveled to Fortin Education Center in Billings, Mont., to take on No. 17 ranked Rocky Mountain (Mont.). The Battlin' Bears opened with an 18-13 lead after the first quarter, while the Trojans outscored RMC 19-13 in the second quarter to take on a slim 32-31 halftime lead.
Both teams scored 12 points in the third quarter as the Trojans maintained their one-point lead at 44-43. Rocky Mountain held Dakota State scoreless in the first five-plus minutes and held off the Trojans for a 55-52 victory.
TEEL BECOMES 25TH PLAYER TO JOIN 1000-POINT MILESTONE
Senior forward
Tabor Teel became the 25th player in Dakota State women's basketball program history to reach the 1,000-point milestone. She made that accomplishment on Jan. 2, despite a 65-63 setback to No. 24 ranked Carroll (Mont.) at PE Center in Helena, Mont.
The highlight came in the third quarter where Teel hit her 1,000th career point. She hit a free-throw with three minutes, one second on the clock for her milestone, giving DSU a 41-40 slim lead over the Saints. Teel finished the game with a double-double of 17 points and grabbed 15 rebounds (tied season-high).
Teel joined Dakota State during the 2022-23 season where she scored 46 points during her freshman year. She tallied 329 points (9.4 points per game) during her sophomore season and 415 points (13.8 points per game) in her junior season. Prior to this weekend's games in North Dakota, Teel scored 228 points (15.2 points per game) for the Trojans.
Teel had racked up a total of 1,018 career points during her career at Dakota State before their game at Bismarck State (N.D.) on Friday evening. She is 392-of-762 from the field during her career (51.4 percent), hit 42 3-pointers, and made 192 free-throws.
Teel is a two-time All-Conference First Team selection at Dakota State in 2024 and 2025. She was named the North Star Athletic Association Defensive Player of the year in 2024, and NSAA Conference Player-of-the-Year in 2025. Teel was selected to the 2025 NAIA Women's Basketball All-America Second Team member.
TROJANS IN THE FRONTIER CONFERENCE RANKS
According to the NAIA-PrestoStats as of Wednesday, Dakota State leads the Frontier Conference in scoring offense with 77.9 points per game in league games. The Trojans are also third in the Frontier Conference in scoring defense, limiting the opponents to 59.3 points per game.
Dakota State leads the overall Frontier Conference in 3-point field goals made with 149 3-pointers this season. The Trojans also lead the league with 443 field goals made.
Tabor Teel is second in the league with 10.7 rebounds per game for the Trojans. She leads the Frontier Conference in total assists with 64 (4.3 assists per game). She is also second in the conference with 26 total blocks. Teel averages 15.2 points per game, which is the sixth best scoring average in the league.
Cierra Watkins ranks eighth in the Frontier Conference with 2.0 steals per game for DSU. She is also 10th in the league with 6.5 rebounds per game.
DSU COMES HOME NEXT WEEKEND
Dakota State returns home at DSU Fieldhouse next weekend for the first time since Dec. 6 versus Valley City State (N.D.). The Trojans are concluding their six-game road stretch in the Frontier Conference play this weekend.
DSU begins their three-game home stand next Friday (Jan. 16) versus No. 14 ranked Montana Tech in the seventh annual Ag Ball, followed by another conference contest versus Montana Western on Jan. 17.
Dakota State concludes their three-game home stand on Friday, Jan. 23 versus their traveling partner Bellevue (Neb.) in the Coaches vs. Cancer contest (where fans are encouraged to wear pink clothing and sneakers to the contest to help raise cancer awareness). The Trojans also begin their second half portion of the Frontier Conference schedule on the same day.
DSU's remaining home contests at DSU Fieldhouse include Rocky Mountain (Mont.) on Feb. 6, Carroll (Mont.) on Feb. 7, Dickinson State (N.D.) on Feb. 20, and Bismarck State (N.D.) on Feb. 21.
2025-26 DSU Trojan Women's Basketball Team Leaders
- Points/Points Per Game: Tabor Teel – 228 points (15.2 points per game)
- Field Goal Percentage: Cierra Watkins – 57.4 percent (66-of-115 field goals)
- 3-point Field Goal Percentage: Hamtyn Heinz – 37.2 percent (29-of-78 3-point field goals)
- Free-Throw Percentage: Caitlin Dyer – 75.0 percent (24-of-32 free-throws)
- Rebounds: Tabor Teel – 160 rebounds (10.7 rebounds per game)
- Assists/Assists Per Game: Tabor Teel – 64 assists/4.3 assists per game
- Steals/Steals Per Game: Cierra Watkins – 30 steals/2.0 steals per game
- Blocked Shots: Tabor Teel – 26 blocked shots (1.7 blocks per game)
