MACOMB, Ill.--Eric Carlson scored 19 points and Josh Vaughan made four free throws in the final 27 seconds as North Dakota State held off Western Illinois for a 60-55 victory in the teams' Summit League men's basketball opener Thursday, Dec. 3, at Western Hall.

Vaughan finished with 13 points, nine rebounds and four assists for the Bison, who evened their record at 3-3 overall.  Dejuan Flowers had eight points and seven rebounds, and Michael Tveidt added eight points and a career-high 11 rebounds for NDSU.

Ceola Clark had 19 points and three steals for Western Illinois (3-4), and Matt Lander scored all 10 of his points in the second half for the Fighting Leathernecks.

North Dakota State led 30-22 at halftime after holding Western Illinois to 27.3 percent shooting and outrebounding the Leathernecks 30-12.

The Bison went ahead by as many as 12 points early in the second half but Western Illinois trimmed it to five points midway through the period.

Western Illinois went on a 7-0 run to get within 54-51 on a pair of Lander free throws with 1:06 left.  It was 56-53 after the teams traded baskets and Vaughan made all four of his free throw attempts with 26.4 and 9.7 seconds left.

NDSU finished with a 50-31 rebounding advantage.  The Bison shot 40.7 percent from the floor compared to 31.8 percent for Western Illinois.

North Dakota State is scheduled to play IUPUI at 7 p.m. ET on Saturday, Dec. 5, at The Jungle in Indianapolis.  The Jaguars are 6-2 overall and 1-0 in The Summit League after a 79-57 victory over South Dakota State on Thursday.