The Warriors put themselves in position to knock off one of the projected top teams in the Summit League on opening night, but South Dakota State weathered an early second-half surge and held on for a 75-66 win.
The matchup capped off the Field of 68 Opening Day Marathon.
Merrimack trailed by five points at halftime, but opened the second half with a 12-3 run to take the lead on a layup from Kevair Kennedy with 12:55 remaining. The Warriors stretched that lead to five — their largest of the night — with 9:20 to play, before the Jackrabbits closed strong, outscoring Merrimack 28-14 down the stretch.
South Dakota State shot 38.9 percent from beyond the arc, while the Warriors’ trademark zone defense caused problems, forcing 14 turnovers.
This was the first look at Merrimack’s revamped rotation and starting lineup, featuring four newcomers and five total new starters.
Tye Dorset, the only returning roster player in the starting five, led the Warriors with 19 points. He was joined by transfers Todd Brodniga (3 rebounds) from Stonehill, Andres Marrero (13 points) from La Salle, Ernest Shelton (15 points, 3 steals) from Gannon, and freshman Kevair Kennedy (10 points, 2 assists).
Jaylen Stinson added six points in seven minutes off the bench in his first game action since the end of the 2024 season after missing all of last year with an injury. Freshman Dylan Veillette grabbed four rebounds in seven minutes, while the rotation also included Aliou Cisse (five minutes), KC Ugwuakazi (17 minutes), and Malik Edmead (14 minutes).
Merrimack’s non-conference schedule continues Thursday night with a road trip to No. 20 Auburn, a Final Four participant last season. Tip-off is set for 8 p.m., with the game streaming on SEC Network+ as part of the ESPN package.
