NDSU Men's Basketball Travels to No. 4 Iowa State Tuesday Night

Tuesday, December 1

Ames, Iowa

7 p.m.

North Dakota State Athletics

Iowa State

Photo by: Richard Svaleson

NDSU Men's Basketball Travels to No. 4 Iowa State Tuesday Night

11/29/2015 6:42:00 PM | Men's Basketball

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  Tuesday's Game: The North Dakota State men's basketball team (4-1 overall) will travel to Ames, Iowa, to take on the No. 4-ranked Iowa State Cyclones on Tuesday, Dec. 1, at 7 p.m. inside Hilton Coliseum (capacity 14,384).

            Where to Watch: Tuesday's game with Iowa State will be streamed live and available for purchase on Cyclones.com.

            Radio: KFGO-AM 790 of Fargo will broadcast the game with Scott Miller calling play-by-play. Coverage includes 20-minute pregame and postgame shows. Free audio streaming will be available at GoBison.com/allaccess.

            About Iowa State: The Cyclones return four starters from last year's team that went 25-9 overall and won the Big 12 Tournament title. Iowa State is off to a 5-0 start this season, including wins over Colorado, Virginia Tech and Illinois.
            All five Iowa State starters are averaging between 13.8 and 16.8 points per game, led by senior forward Georges Niang at 16.8 ppg. Junior guard Monte Morris is averaging 14.8 points and 7.0 assists per game, and senior forward Jameel McKay is posting 13.8 points and 10.4 rebounds per contest.
            Iowa State is shooting 52.3 percent this season to rank among the nation's top 15 schools in that category.

            The Series vs. Iowa State: Tuesday will be the fifth meeting between the Bison and Cyclones, with Iowa State holding a 4-0 lead in the series. NDSU has played Iowa State twice as a Division I school – on Dec. 31, 2006, and on Jan. 9, 2010 – with the most recent game being a 73-71 Iowa State victory.

            Big Step Up: Sophomore guard Paul Miller is averaging 19.6 points per game through the first five contests of the season. With 98 total points this season, Miller has already matched 46 percent of his total scoring output (214 points) as a freshman.

            Defensive Force: 6-foot-6 forward Dexter Werner has at least one block in every game this season, including five over the past two games.

            Turnover Advantage: The Bison have had a significant advantage in the turnover department this season. NDSU is averaging just 9.2 turnovers per game while creating 15.8 for its opponents – a plus-6.6 turnover margin.

            In Overtime: The Bison have won their last five overtime games, dating back to the start of the 2013-14 season.

            Up at Half: Since the start of the 2013-14 season, the Bison are 42-1 when leading at halftime. NDSU led Illinois 39-28 at the half on Nov. 15 of this season before falling 80-74.

            Slow Starts: In the past two games, NDSU has trailed by at least a dozen points midway through the first half before surging back for victories. On Nov. 25 against Montana, NDSU trailed 23-11 with 10 minutes left in the opening period before rallying to earn a 73-53 victory. On Nov. 28 against North Carolina A&T, the Bison were down 20-5 midway through the first half but ultimately won, 77-56.

            High Percentage: Dexter Werner is shooting 62.5 percent for the season (20-for-32). He went 8-of-12 in the season-opening win at UC Davis and was a perfect 5-of-5 in the home victory over North Carolina A&T.

            Bison against Top 25 Opponents: Tuesday will be North Dakota State's 13th game against a ranked opponent in Division I play, with the Bison holding a 3-9 record in those games. (Rankings are USA Today Coaches/Associated Press)
            #13/15 Wisconsin         W, 62-55           Kohl Center                      Jan. 21, 2006
            #9/8 Marquette             W, 64-60           Bradley Center                  Dec. 2, 2006
            #13/14 Kansas              L, 74-84            Metrodome                       Mar. 20, 2009     NCAA
            #15/17 Minnesota         L, 65-84            Williams Arena                 Nov. 24, 2010
            #1/1 Indiana                 L, 61-87            Assembly Hall                   Nov. 12, 2012
            #16/13 Minnesota         L, 57-70            Williams Arena                 Dec. 11, 2012
            #2/3 Ohio State            L, 62-79            Value City Arena              Dec. 14, 2013
            #20/21 Oklahoma         W, 80-75 OT    Spokane Arena                  Mar. 20, 2014     NCAA
            #11/13 San Diego St.   L, 44-63            Spokane Arena                  Mar. 22, 2014     NCAA
            #10/10 Texas                L, 50-85            Erwin Center                     Nov. 14, 2014
            #25/RV Iowa                L, 56-87            Carver Hawkeye Arena    Nov. 17, 2014
            #7/7 Gonzaga               L, 76-86            KeyArena                          Mar. 20, 2015     NCAA

            Home Court: With 28 straight home wins, the Bison own the fifth-longest active home court winning streak in the nation. NDSU is 41-2 at home since the start of the 2012-13 season, with the only two losses being to Southern Miss (70-69) on Nov. 18, 2013, and Western Illinois (49-36) on Feb. 14, 2013.

            High Level: NDSU is one of only nine mid-major programs in the country to post at least 23 victories in each of the last three seasons. Wichita State, Gonzaga, VCU, Stephen F. Austin, BYU, Louisiana Tech, Stony Brook and New Mexico State are the other eight.

            Brown Delivers: Senior guard Kory Brown is shooting 65 percent from the floor this season while averaging 10 points and 7 rebounds per game.

            Good Company: NDSU head coach David Richman is among the most successful coaches in the country who are under 40 years old. His .711 win percentage ranks fourth behind only Shaka Smart (Texas, .741), Mike White (Florida, .720) and Josh Pastner (Memphis, .718).

            Comeback Win: Trailing 69-60 with less than two minutes remaining in the season opener at UC Davis on Nov. 13, the Bison scored 19 straight points – nine in a row to force overtime, and then 10 more to open the overtime period. NDSU won the game, 79-71.

            Three-Point Increase: NDSU is attempting an average of 22.6 three-pointers per game this season -- an increase of more than four per contest over last year (18.2 per game).

            Offensive Spark: Sophomore guard Malik Clements, a transfer from Pearl River Community College (Miss.), provided NDSU an offensive spark off the bench in his first two Division I games. He scored 13 points in 18 minutes at UC Davis on Nov. 13 and came back to score 16 points in 26 minutes two days later at Illinois. Clements drained six total three-pointers between the two games.

            Bison Debuts: Guard Khy Kabellis and forwards Spencer Eliason and Dylan Miller joined Clements in making their NDSU debuts on the season opening road trip. Kabellis and Miller are true freshmen, while Eliason sat out last season as a redshirt.

            Double-Doubles: Senior Kory Brown (10 points, 10 rebounds) and junior Dexter Werner (16 points, 12 rebounds) both registered double-doubles in the season-opening win at UC Davis. It was the third double-double of Brown's career and Werner's second.