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North Dakota State vs. Colorado
Tuesday, Nov. 22 | 5 p.m. | Fargo, N.D. | Scheels Center (5,644)
Radio: Bison 1660 AM (Keith Brake, play-by-play; Jeremy Jorgenson, color) | TV: MidcoSN, ESPN3, WatchESPN App (Brian Shawn, play-by-play; Greg Stemen, color)
Live Stats | Live Video | Live Audio
 

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The Game
        After a two-game road trip, the North Dakota State University women's basketball team returns home to the Scheels Center at the Sanford Health Athletic Complex to host the University of Colorado Buffaloes on Tuesday, Nov. 22, at 5 p.m. The game is part of a doubleheader with the NDSU men's basketball team, which will take on Waldorf at approximately 8 p.m.
 
Series History
        Tuesday's contest against Colorado will mark the second meeting in the all-time series between the Bison and Buffaloes. In the lone meeting in the series during the 1978 season, the Buffs defeated North Dakota State, 87-69. The game will also be NDSU's first-ever contest against a Pac-12 opponent. 
 
Scouting Colorado

• The University of Colorado Buffaloes enter the week at 3-0 overall after defeating No. 15/19 Kentucky Nov. 19 in Boulder, Colo., 79-69. 
• Through three games, the Buffs are led by sophomore guards Kennedy Leonard (20 points per game, 9.7 assists per game) and Alexis Robinson (19.3 points per game, three rebounds per game), and senior guard/forward Haley Smith (12.7 points per game, 6.3 rebounds per game). On the glass, CU is paced by junior center Zoe Correal with seven rebounds per game. 
• As a team, the Buffs are averaging 85.7 points per game while holding opponents to just 66.3 points per game. Colorado is outrebounding its adversaries, 43.3 to 38.3. 
• The Buffaloes were picked to finish 11th in the Pac-12 preseason poll. Colorado posted a record of 7-23 last season. 
• Colorado redshirt freshman forward Monica Burich is the younger sister of former NDSU women's basketball standout center Janae Burich (2010-13)
• The Buffs are under the direction of first season head coach JR Payne. 

Bison Notes

• North Dakota State enters Tuesday at 1-2 overall after falling at Providence Nov. 16, 86-63.
• Through three games, junior guard Taylor Thunstedt (15 points per game, 4.7 rebounds per game), senior forward Emily Spier (11.3 points per game, 8.7 rebounds per game) and freshman guard Sarah Jacobson (10.7 points per game, 3.3 assists per game) lead the Bison.
• As a team, the Bison are being outscored, 73.0 to 63.7, but are outrebounding their opponents, 38.3 to 36.3.
• NDSU has struggled scoring in the first and second quarters through three games. The Bison are being outscored, 57-32, in the opening period and 56-45 in the second period. North Dakota State has outscored opponents in the third quarter, 51-49, and fourth quarter, 63-57.
• The Bison were picked to finish seventh in The Summit League preseason poll.
• Taylor Thunstedt was named to the Summit League Preseason All-League Second Team.

 
Thunstedt, For Three!
        Entering Tuesday, Taylor Thunstedt ranks second in career three-point field-goal percentage at 38.7 percent and third in career three-point field goals made with 148. Thunstedt set a new NDSU single-season record last season with 82 made three-pointers.
 
Jones Crashing the Offensive Boards
        Brianna Jones ranked second on the team in rebounding last season with 7.7 boards per game but led NDSU in offensive rebounds with 3.1 offensive boards per game. Her 3.1 offensive rebounds per game rank second on the NDSU single-season offensive rebounds record chart while her 90 total offensive boards in 2015-16 rank third in Bison single-season history.
 
Jacobson Making the Extra Pass
        Sarah Jacobson leads the Bison with 3.3 assists per game through three contests. The Fargo native has dished out 10 assists, including a team-high four in NDSU's season-opening win over Dickinson State. Jacobson tallied three assists each in the Bison's games at UMass and Providence. She also ranks third on the team in scoring with 10.7 points per game.
 
Spier Controlling the Glass
        Emily Spier leads North Dakota State and ranks second in The Summit League with 8.7 rebounds per game. The Buffalo, Minn., native tallied NDSU's first double-double of 2016-17 with 15 points and 12 boards at UMass Nov. 14. Spier is also second on the team in scoring with 11.3 points per game.
 
Field-Goal Percentage Leaders
        Emily Spier paces NDSU in field-goal percentage through three games at 50 percent. She has made 16 shots in 32 attempts. Sarah Jacobson is second on the team, going 11-of-27 for 41 percent, and Taylor Thunstedt is third, making 16 of 50 shots for 32 percent.
 
Bison Women Ink Four High School Standouts on National Signing Day
        North Dakota State women's basketball head coach Maren Walseth announced Wednesday, Nov. 9, that high school seniors Danneka Voegeli (C, 6-2, Winona, Minn.), Macey Kvilvang (F, 6-4, Cando, N.D.), Emily Dietz (F, 6-3, West Fargo, N.D.) and Michelle Gaislerova (G, 5-11, Trutnov, Czech Republic) have signed National Letters of Intent to continue their education and play women's basketball for the Bison starting in the fall of 2017.
 
Last Time Out: Providence Downs NDSU Women's Basketball
        The Providence College Friars defeated the North Dakota State University women's basketball team, 86-63, on Wednesday, Nov. 16, at Alumni Hall in Providence, Rhode Island.
        Junior Taylor Thunstedt and freshman Anna Goodhope each scored 11 points to lead the Bison, while freshman Rylee Nudell pulled down a team-high seven boards after making her first collegiate start.
        For the game, NDSU shot just 40 percent from the field, 22 percent from three-point range and 50 percent from the free-throw line. The Bison were outrebounded, 38-32, and outscored in in the paint, 47-26.
        Maddie Jolin led five Friars in double figures with 18 points on 6-of-11 shooting from the field.
        Providence shot 54 percent from the field and went a perfect 15-of-15 at the foul line in the contest.
 
NDSU Women's Basketball Picked Seventh in Summit League Preseason Poll
        The North Dakota State women's basketball team was picked to finish seventh in The Summit League Preseason Poll. NDSU tallied 156 points in the poll. Defending Summit League tournament champion South Dakota State was tabbed the preseason favorite with 542 points and 30 first-place votes, while IUPUI was picked second with 438 points. South Dakota, the WNIT champion last season, rounded out the top-three in third with 393 points and three first-place votes. Oral Roberts collected the final first-place vote and was voted fourth with 391 points. Omaha, Western Illinois, NDSU, Denver and Fort Wayne rounded out the poll.
 
Minimum of 13 NDSU Women's Basketball Games to be Televised in 2016-17
        A minimum of 13 North Dakota State University women's basketball games will be televised during the upcoming 2016-17 season as a result of a new broadcast agreement with Midco Sports Network.
        MidcoSN will televise 12 of NDSU's 14 home games in high definition inside the new Scheels Center at the Sanford Health Athletic Complex starting with the exhibition contest against Bemidji State Nov. 3. With the exception of the exhibition game, all televised home contests will also air nationally on ESPN3 and the WatchESPN app.
        MidcoSN will also broadcast North Dakota State's Summit League road game at South Dakota State Feb. 2.
        NDSU's non-conference game at Milwaukee Dec. 3 will air on ESPN3 and the WatchESPN app.
        In addition to its game coverage, MidcoSN will produce and air The Bison Basketball Show during the upcoming season. The weekly, half-hour show will air Thursdays at 5:30 p.m. and will provide an inside look into the NDSU basketball teams with interviews, feature stories, and highlights of home and away contests.
 
On the Horizon
        NDSU travels west to San Luis Obispo, Calif., for the Cal Poly/ShareSLO Holiday Tournament Nov. 25-26. The Bison will take on Cal Poly Nov. 25 before facing Mid-Major No. 22-ranked Central Michigan Nov. 26. Both games are slated to tip-off at 4 p.m. CT (2 p.m. PT).
 
Head Coach Maren Walseth
        Maren Walseth is in her third season as the head women's basketball coach at North Dakota State University.
     NDSU finished the 2015-16 season with an overall record 7-22 and was 2-14 in Summit League play. Senior Marena Whittle was named to the All-Summit League first team, while sophomore Taylor Thunstedt was tabbed honorable mention all-league.
     Walseth graduated from the NCAA Women Coaches Academy in 2015. The academy is an educational training open to coaches of all experience levels that offers non-sport-specific program management strategies.
     In her inaugural season at NDSU in 2014-15, she helped guide the Bison to an 11-17 overall record and a 7-9 Summit League mark. North Dakota State finished sixth in The Summit League, the highest finish for NDSU women's basketball since the 2011-12 season.
     Walseth helped coach the Bison to several milestone victories during the 2014-15 season. The first occurred on Jan. 2, when NDSU claimed a 77-64 triumph over Oral Roberts at Scheels Arena, marking the first win for the Bison over the Golden Eagles since the 2009-10 season. The win also snapped a five-game losing skid to ORU. Just two days later on Jan. 4, the Bison stunned the then defending Summit League regular season champion South Dakota State Jackrabbits, defeating SDSU in front of 1,782 spectators at Scheels Arena, 83-78. The victory was the first over the Jacks since 2010-11 and the first at home since 2004-05.
     North Dakota State also captured the Florida Atlantic Thanksgiving Tournament title with wins over Northeastern (Mass.) and NJIT Nov. 28-29 in Boca Raton, Fla.
     Under Walseth's leadership, three student-athletes were named All-Summit League, the most since NDSU joined the league in 2007.
     Walseth joined the Bison in April, 2014, after spending seven years as an assistant coach at Big Ten power Penn State University in State College, Pa., where she helped the Lady Lions to three Big Ten championships, four NCAA tournament appearances and two NCAA Sweet 16 appearances.
     At Penn State, Walseth was primarily responsible for coaching the post players while also playing a significant role in recruiting and opponent scouting efforts. She was the lead academic liaison for the Lady Lions and coached 32 Academic All-Big Ten recipients.
     Prior to becoming an assistant at Penn State, Walseth spent three years as an assistant coach at the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md. While at Navy, she assisted with recruiting as well as on-court player development and scouting, and was also the academic liaison for the Midshipmen.
     A native of Bloomington, Minn., Walseth was a two-time All-Big Ten selection and a three-time Academic All-Big Ten honoree as a forward at Penn State from 1997-2002. She was also a key member of the 2000 Lady Lion team that advanced to the Final Four and claimed the Big Ten conference championship. Walseth also was a member of the 1998 WNIT championship team. She graduated from Penn State in 2002 with a bachelor's degree in communications.
     Walseth was drafted by the Sacramento Monarchs in the third-round of the 2001 WNBA draft and spent four years playing professionally. She played for the Washington Mystics of the WNBA in 2002 before spending two years playing professionally in France. Walseth also spent a season with the Women's National Basketball League's (NWBL) Colorado Chill.
        Walseth's sister, Annika, played for NDSU during the 2007-08 season.