One of South Dakota State’s best men’s basketball players has decided his sophomore campaign is over with just two weeks remaining in the regular season.
Sophomore guard Noah Freidel announced Wednesday he will sit out and step aside to treat his mental health issues. The former Tea Area standout is the second leading scorer for the Jackrabbits and eighth in scoring in the Summit League at 17.1 points per game and was leading the conference in 3-pointers made per game.
“I’ve been struggling with depression and anxiety,” Freidel said in a prepared statement. “I’m going to take this time to get healthy and work through these mental health issues. I’m so thankful to be surrounded by amazing teammates and I can’t wait to get back out on the floor with them.”
The Jacks (12-5, 6-2) are tied for the league lead with North Dakota State and South Dakota with four games remaining before the Summit League Tournament. SDSU travels to NDSU for games on Friday and Saturday this weekend.
“It’s important for us to worry about the Jackrabbits, and it’s important for us to worry about getting better everyday,” SDSU coach Eric Henderson said Wednesday in the team’s weekly media conference when asked about his team adjusting to life without Freidel, who the coach suspended for two games earlier this season after Freidel was ejected from a game after punching USD guard Stanley Umude.
Freidel sat out more than half of one game and then an entire contest in the Jacks’ two-game series at Oral Roberts this past weekend. Henderson said the extent of Freidel’s involvement with the Jacks the rest of the season — whether he will be at practices and/or games — will be kept between player and coach.
“Noah’s a full member of our team,” Henderson said. “His teammates love him, his coaches love him and our fans love him. He’s an awesome kid.”
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