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Complete NDSU Game Notes
Dec. 21 vs. UNCW  Listen  |  Live Stats

The Games: The North Dakota State men's basketball team (5-6 overall) travels to El Paso, Texas, for the Sun Bowl Invitational on Dec. 21-22. The Bison will open against UNC Wilmington on Thursday evening before playing either Howard or UTEP on Friday.
 
Thu., Dec. 21      vs. UNC Wilmington       6 p.m. CT / 5 p.m. MT
Fri., Dec. 22        vs. UTEP / Howard          TBD
 
Radio: Both Sun Bowl Invitational games will be broadcast on 107.9 The Fox and Bison1660, as well as being streamed on the 107.9 The Fox app, the Bison1660 app, and on GoBison.com/allaccess. Jeff Culhane will call the action.
 
About UNCW: The Seahawks are 2-7 entering the Sun Bowl Invitational after being picked to finish fifth in the 10-team Colonial Athletic Association (CAA). UNCW went 29-6 and earned an NCAA Tournament berth last season. This is C.B. McGrath's first season as head coach of the Seahawks.
 
New Opponents: The Bison have never played UNC Wilmington, Howard or UTEP in men's basketball.
 
Tough Crowd: NDSU's six losses this season have come against opponents with a combined record of 51-14.
 
Stay Hot: Senior A.J. Jacobson is hot from beyond the arc this season, making 19-of-35 three-point attempts (54 percent) through 11 games.
 
Minutes Boost: Through 11 games this season, junior forward Spencer Eliason has already played more minutes (200) than in the previous two seasons combined (169). Eliason is shooting 55.6 percent from the field this year.
 
Sharp Shooter: Sophomore guard Jared Samuelson has already surpassed his three-point output from last season. He made 16 three-pointers in 28 games last year, and has made 17 in the first 11 games of this year at a 42-percent clip.
 
Stat Sheet Stuffer: Senior guard Paul Miller leads NDSU in points, rebounds, assists and steals this season.
 
Freshman Contributions: Both of NDSU's freshmen who are playing this season have already recorded games with 17 or more points. Cameron Hunter scored 24 points at USC on Nov. 13, and Rocky Kreuser put up 17 points vs. Valley City State on Dec. 12. Both Hunter and Kreuser have multiple games scoring in double digits.
 
No Freebies: Only seven Division I teams are attempting fewer free throws per game than NDSU this season. The Bison have averaged 13.8 free throw attempts through 11 contests.
 
Hot Shooting: In the victory over Valley City State on Dec. 12, the Bison made 40-of-57 shots for 70.2 percent – the second-best team shooting performance in school history. NDSU came up just short of the school record of 70.5 percent, established with a 31-of-44 effort vs. Minnesota State Mankato on Jan. 31, 1987.
              It also ranks as the second-highest team field goal percentage in the nation this season.
 
Century Mark for Jacobson: A.J. Jacobson played in his 100th career game on Dec. 12 vs. Valley City State. He also became the 15th player in NDSU history to start at least 100 career games for the Bison. Jacobson ranks 6th in school history in minutes average (32.0), 9th in three-pointers made (175), and 10th in career three-point percentage (.401).
 
New Highs: Several Bison set new career- or season-highs in the win at North Dakota on Dec. 9. Tyson Ward set a new career-high with six assists, Cameron Hunter set a new high with six rebounds, and Spencer Eliason scored a season-best nine points.
 
Doesn't Happen Often: NDSU's three straight losses to Stephen F. Austin, Mississippi State and Missouri State marked the first three-game losing streak for the Bison since late February and March of 2012. NDSU had played 168 games in that stretch without losing three in a row.
 
Pair of 1,000-Point Scorers: NDSU is one of just 21 Division I teams that have at least two active 1,000-point scorers. Seniors Paul Miller and A.J. Jacobson both surpassed 1,000 career points in the first half of NDSU's win over Denver on Feb. 11 of last season. Jacobson became the 33rd Bison to reach the milestone, and Miller was the 34th.