Hunter Scores 35, Bison Earn 84-79 Victory at South Dakota

Saturday, January 6

Vermillion, S.D.

1 p.m.

North Dakota State Athletics

9-7, 1-1SL

South Dakota

14-5, 2-1SL

Team	1	2	F
North Dakota State	44	40	84
South Dakota	33	46	79

Photo by: James Wood

Hunter Scores 35, Bison Earn 84-79 Victory at South Dakota

1/6/2018 4:25:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score

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VERMILLION, S.D. – North Dakota State is the only visiting men's basketball team to win at South Dakota's Sanford Coyote Sports Center. And now the Bison have done it twice.

NDSU withstood a second-half rally by the Coyotes to pull out an 84-79 victory on Saturday afternoon.

Redshirt freshman guard Cameron Hunter scored a season-high 35 points for the Bison, making 9-of-12 shots, a perfect 5-for-5 from three-point range, and 12-of-14 at the free throw line. Senior guard Paul Miller added an impressive 24 points, six rebounds and six assists for NDSU.

The Bison made 11-of-22 from beyond the arc in the game and shot 53 percent overall.

NDSU led by 14 in the opening minute of the second half following a three-point play by Hunter that made it 49-35. South Dakota battled back to cut the Bison lead to four on three different occasions before finally storming into the lead with a 7-0 run capped by a Matt Mooney three-pointer. The Coyotes led 72-71 with 4:45 remaining.

The Bison took the lead for good when Miller found Spencer Eliason under the basket for a bucket with 2:11 left, and then a steal by Hunter on the next possession led to a layup for Miller to make it 79-76 NDSU with 1:41 to play.

Hunter made five free throws in the final minute to close out the victory. Deng Geu, Chris Quayle and Eliason all finished with six points for the Bison.

NDSU trailed 15-3 less than four minutes into the game, but the Bison rallied with a 17-2 run late in the first half – at one point making three-pointers on five consecutive possessions.

NDSU won 70-69 in Vermillion last season. South Dakota is 21-0 against all other opponents in the two-year-old arena.

NDSU hosts Denver on Thursday, Jan. 11, at the Scheels Center.