BOISE, Idaho — Reed Tellinghuisen knows what “March Madness” is all about.

Two years ago as a sophomore, Tellinghuisen and South Dakota State pushed Maryland to the brink in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament in one of those always-dangerous 5-12 matchups.

Now, the Jackrabbits enter this year slotted once more on the 12-line with a date vs. Ohio State set for Thursday afternoon in the first round of the West Regional.

Tip is set for 3 p.m. from the Taco Bell Arena. The winner advances to face either Gonzaga or UNC Greensboro on Saturday. Last year, the Zags topped the Jackrabbits in the first round.

South Dakota State (28-6 overall) has won 19 of its last 20 games overall, sweeping both the Summit League regular season and conference tournament titles. This is the third consecutive year they have qualified for the “Big Dance,” all with Tellinghuisen in the starting lineup.

“We have a lot of guys with tournament experience on this team, which definitely helps,” said Tellinghuisen, a graduate of East Sac County. “It’s a totally different atmosphere compared to any regular season game. Having guys that have not only played in one NCAA Tournament — but two — will definitely help.”

Tellinghuisen was named all-league honorable mention this past season, averaging 12 points and five rebounds per game. He set new school records for made 3-pointers with 254 and starts at 125. That includes every game each of the past three seasons.

Since the 2013 NCAA Tournament, there have been nine different victories by No. 12 seeds over No. 5s, including last year when Middle Tennessee State bested Minnesota. In 2016, two happened, with three taking place in both 2014 and ’13.

“This ties our school-record for the highest-seeded team,” Tellinghuisen said. “This is the winningest season in program history and it’s nice to be recognized for that. This shows how hard our guys have worked throughout the whole season and being a 12-seed as a mid-major is an honor.

“Our coaching staff did a good job of scheduling tough, non-conference opponents. We played some tough teams in some tough environments and that will for sure help us with our upcoming game. I think it’s easy to get caught up in the atmosphere, especially at the NCAA Tournament, but our guys have been good all year on focusing on the next possession.”

As an upset-minded team, Tellinghuisen is banking on the crowd in Boise getting behind them vs. the Buckeyes (24-8), who finished tied for second in the Big Ten.

“The crowd is always awesome, especially when you are the underdog,” he said. “Playing in Boise will definitely be to our advantage and I assume that there will be a lot of Gonzaga fans at our game cheering us on, too.”

Tellinghuisen has played 67 minutes in the two NCAA Tournament games for SDSU, scoring 14 points with five rebounds, two steals and three made triples.