FORT PIERRE — Buffalomania has returned to Fort Pierre.

During the 1977-78 season, Stanley County High School qualified for the state boys basketball tournament — a Cinderella-like run that became known among fans as “Buffalomania.”

The Buffaloes also qualified for state in the 1996-97 season, and Stanley County is now making just its third-ever state boys basketball appearance on March 19-21 in Rapid City. 

For Stanley County High School graduate Dan Duffy, whose nephew Eddie is a junior, it brings back memories of the 1977-78 season. 

“As a loyal Buffalo, it’s great to see this group in particular be able to make it to the state tournament, and of course you look at the names on the team and one of them is obviously my nephew, and there’s Deals on the team,” Duffy said. “So it’s a little bit like history repeating itself.” 

Forty-eight years after the 1978 run, Buffalomania has returned to the central South Dakota town of 2,000 along the Missouri River. Stanley County advanced to the Class A state boys basketball tournament on March 11, following a 54-45 win over Flandreau in the SoDak 16. 

Duffy, now an attorney in Rapid City, attended the SoDak 16 game in Miller and was instantly transported back to the days of Buffalomania.

“It takes you back just in an instant to what it’s like when you get to be as a team, a high school and a community, that you get to be a part of something like that,” said Duffy, who was then a junior and was a two-time Class B all-stater. 

The 1977-78 Buffs and the 2025-26 Buffs share striking similarities, starting with their deep family ties. Along with Duffy’s nephew Eddie on the roster, Paxton Deal and Jack Deal carry on the legacy as nephews of former Stanley County standouts Sean Deal and Sanford Deal.

Both the old and new Buffs flew under the radar with little statewide hype — until they punched their tickets to the state tournament.

“This Stanley County team, I am not sure at the beginning of the year that anyone was saying this is a team that is going to make it to a state tournament,” Duffy said. “Not that they weren’t capable. But I don’t think that they were necessarily on anybody’s radar screen. It is kind of interesting to see the parallels in a team like this. They’re a great group of guys who seem to really like each other. They play hard. They’ve got a number of different weapons. It’s been a fun team to watch play.”

In the 1977-78 season, Stanley County made school history with their first state tourney berth and were the ultimate underdogs. Playing under the old two-class system, the Buffaloes won three district games and two region contests to earn a spot at state. 

Stanley County lost to Murdo (twice), Cheyenne-Eagle Butte, Lyman, Highmore and Chamberlain during the regular season. The Buffaloes, however, avenged losses against Murdo and Chamberlain in the region tournament. 

“It certainly wasn’t an easy task to get there,” Duffy said. “But as we know, that always kind of makes it sweeter when you know that you are playing really good teams and you have an opportunity to play them to get to the state tournament.”  

Stanley County’s unlikely postseason run began in the District 15B tournament, opening with wins over Sully Buttes (80-64) and Harrold (89-54).

In the District 15B championship, Ron Jeffries hit six straight free throws in the final 1 1/2 minutes as Stanley County outlasted Gettysburg, 81-77. Duffy tossed in 33 points and Eddie Christensen scored 21 points. Sanford Deal added 11 points and Jeffries totaled 10 points. 

In the Region 4B tournament, Stanley County matched up with all-stater John Thune and the Murdo Coyotes for the third time. The Coyotes had defeated the Buffaloes twice, including a 64-48 decision in the prestigious Jones County Invitational championship. 

At the hallowed Huron Arena, the Buffaloes stampeded past the Coyotes by a 64-37 score. Christensen powered the Buffaloes with 18 points, while Duffy and Sanford Deal scored 14 points apiece. Sean Deal added eight points. Thune, who is currently the Senate majority leader, led the Coyotes with 10 points in the loss. 

In the Region 4B championship, Stanley County faced off against Chamberlain for the second time and just a couple weeks after a 68-62 loss in the regular-season finale. In the rematch, Stanley County led 25-15 at halftime, 40-29 after the third quarter and clipped the Cubs 57-52 for the region title. Duffy poured in 28 points and Christensen added 11 points. 

And most of the Buffaloes’ faithful were also stranded at home due to a blizzard.

“There were a number of people from Fort Pierre, including my parents, who couldn't even make it to the region championship,” Duffy said. “That was kind of another added South Dakota cultural basketball twist, where this time of year weather always seems to play a role and that night it played a significant role. Because we didn’t necessarily have all the people there that would have liked to have been there.” 

Up next, the Buffaloes were off to Sioux Falls and the Class B boys basketball tournament. Duffy said there was a buzz surrounding the Buffs, and small-town kids were wide-eyed walking into the Sioux Falls Arena for the first time. 

“We walked into the Sioux Falls Arena and it felt like that scene in “Hoosiers”, where they walk in and they go out and measure the height of the rim,” Duffy said. “I think that’s kind of the way we felt. We walked in and we felt ‘You know, you could fit most of the towns in our conference in this building.’ ” 

In the first round, Stanley County faced off against reigning state champion Webster. The Bearcats defeated Armour for the state championship in 1977, and a rematch with the Packers was looming in 1978. 

Stanley County, however, halted the rematch and stunned the Bearcats 65-63 behind Duffy’s 34 points. Christensen added 11 points and Sanford Deal scored eight points. Sean Deal had six points for Stanley County, which introduced itself to a statewide audience with the upset win. 

“It was just an incredible experience to be able to play the returning state champions and then knock them off in front of a huge crowd at the Arena,” Duffy said. “Those are the kind of things when you are shooting around in the basketball court in Fort Pierre, you could only dream about.” 

In the semifinals, Stanley County squared off against the iconic Armour Packers. Armour, which was in the midst of a 64-game winning streak, defeated the Buffaloes by an 87-58 score and won the state championship the next night. 

The Packers, led by legendary coach Burnell Glanzer, received 24 points and 10 rebounds from Burnell’s brother Barry Glanzer. Brian Bindert had 17 points and Dennis Tiefenthaler scored 16 points for Armour, which was recognized by the South Dakota High School Basketball Hall of Fame as its Team of Excellence in 2024. 

“I think we competed for a half maybe, and they had just so much firepower and they wore you down,” said Duffy, who scored 21 points in the loss. “We were fortunate that we got to play a team like Armour. But as you look back you say, ‘It would have been nice if we made it a little bit closer.’ But there was no shame in getting beat by them. They were just that good.” 

In the third-place game, Stanley County’s storybook season finished with a 43-41 win over legendary coach Larry Luitjens and the Custer Wildcats. Two late Sanford Deal steals and Duffy’s 16 points keyed the victory. Deal scored 11 points and Christensen added 10 points. 

The Buffaloes finished the memorable season with a 20-7 record. 

“It was nice to end that run with a win against a team like Custer, and a coach like Larry Luitjens, who is obviously iconic in the history of South Dakota high school basketball,” said Duffy, an all-tourney selection after scoring 71 points.  

The 1977-78 Stanley County Buffaloes were inducted into the school’s hall of fame in 2019. The Buffaloes were coached by Ron Lawrence (head coach) and Leon Breske (assistant coach). The other team members included Ray Boardman, Mark Hackett, Andy Murphy, Tom Oleson, Randy Peterson, Mark Reinhard and Ben Smith. 

“We got along really well on or off the court and all of those guys were willing to play whatever role they had to to help us win,” said Duffy, who later starred at Dakota Wesleyan University. “There weren't a lot of egos out there, where people wanted the ball more or they wanted more points. Everybody on the team really wanted to win, as a result when you have a team like that you end up with a better chance to have success.”

As for this weekend, Duffy will be sporting the purple and gold again as Stanley County returns to the state tournament at the Monument in Rapid City. The No. 6 seed Buffaloes (20-2) will play No. 3 Clark/Willow Lake (20-2) at 6:45 p.m., MT in the first round on Thursday. 

“To watch them come out on the floor at the Monument wearing the Buffalo jerseys and seeing the Fort Pierre people here supporting them, I am looking forward to that,” Duffy said.