SPEARFISH, S.D. – Dominating a one-sided affair from start to finish on Wednesday evening at the Donald E. Young Center, No. 6 Black Hills State raced past the Montana State University Billings men's basketball team 97-38.
 
Matthew Ragsdale hit back-to-back threes to start the game, BHSU opened on a 13-0 run, and the hosts led 58-20 after 20 minutes in a game that was all but decided after the first half. MSUB (4-1) endured its first loss of the season, while surging Black Hills State improved to 5-0 living up to its lofty national ranking.
 
Sava Dukic led all players with 26 points on 9-for-13 shooting, including a 6-for-9 mark from 3-point range. He added six assists and four rebounds in 29 minutes. Ragsdale parlayed his early hot hand into a 5-for-6 night from the arc, and overall he made 7 of 9 shots on his way to 20 points. Joel Scott also reached double figures for BHSU with 10 points, while leading the team with nine rebounds.
 
Abdul Bah led MSUB with nine points, while Bilal Shabazz contributed eight with a team-leading five rebounds. Emmanuel Akpan added six points and Malik Brikat grabbed six rebounds for the 'Jackets. MSUB made just 14 of 68 shots (20.6 percent), including 3 of 20 threes (15.0 percent). The lone bright spot in the game for the visitors was a 7-for-7 mark from the free-throw line.
 
Black Hills State shot an incredible 63.8 percent (37-for-58), while making 17 of 29 threes (58.6 percent) and 6 of 10 free throws (60.0 percent). BHSU dominated the glass 49-29, while out-scoring the 'Jackets in the paint 34-18. BHSU finished the game with 24 assists while MSUB managed just one.
 
THE BUZZ: Bah was named the St. Vincent Healthcare Player of the Game…MSUB is now 13-8 all-time against Black Hills State and is 3-4 in road contests.
 
NEXT UP: After having Thanksgiving off, the 'Jackets will look to bounce back at South Dakota Mines on Friday evening with a 6 p.m. tipoff. Live coverage for the game will be available online here.