GCU falls as South Dakota State wins nation-best 21st straight home game

BROOKINGS, S.D. (AP) — David Jenkins made four 3-pointers and scored 31 points, Mike Daum had 20 points and 13 rebounds and defending Summit League champion South Dakota State beat Grand Canyon 79-74 on Tuesday night to extend the nation’s longest active home winning streak to 21 straight games.

Jenkins, the 2017-18 Summit League freshman of the year, was 8 of 16 from the field and 11 of 15 at the free-throw line.

Daum, the two-time Summit League player of the year, finished sixth in the nation in points at 23.9 and 14th in rebounds at 10.3 last year. He has a chance to become the ninth player in Division I history to reach 3,000 career points as he entered the season with 2,232.

South Dakota State has reached the NCAA Tournament the past three seasons, and five of the last seven. The Jackrabbits went 28-7 last year and challenged Ohio State in the first round of the tournament.

Trey Drechsel and Carlos Johnson each scored 17 points for Grand Canyon. Sophomore center Alessandro Lever, picked as the Western Athletic Conference’s preseason player of the year, scored nine points.

Twice in the last four seasons, Grand Canyon has opened the season on the road against the nation’s top-ranked team.