NDSU Heads to U.S. Bank Stadium Saturday, On to Iowa State Monday

Saturday, December 1

Minneapolis, Minn. (U.S. Bank Stadium)

5:30 p.m.

North Dakota State Athletics

Drake

NDSU Heads to U.S. Bank Stadium Saturday, On to Iowa State Monday

11/30/2018 11:30:00 AM | Men's Basketball

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Complete NDSU Game Notes
Dec. 1 vs. Drake Watch | Listen
Dec. 3 at Iowa State Watch | Listen | Live Stats

The Games: The North Dakota State men's basketball team (2-5 overall) continues its long string of road games this weekend. The Bison play Drake at the U.S. Bank Stadium Basketball Classic in Minneapolis on Saturday, Dec. 1, at 5:30 p.m. NDSU will then travel to Ames, Iowa, to play Iowa State on Monday, Dec. 3, at 7 p.m.

Where to Watch: Saturday's game will be broadcast on Midco Sports Network and ESPN+, with Brian Shawn and Greg Stemen on the call. Monday's game will be broadcast on Cyclones.tv and carried across the state of Iowa on Mediacom.

Radio: Brad Jones will call Saturday's game on The City 94.5 FM. Jeff Culhane will call Monday's game on 107.9 The Fox and Bison 1660, as well as being streamed on the 107.9 The Fox and Bison 1660 apps and on GoBison.com/allaccess.

Twin Cities Ties: The U.S. Bank Stadium Basketball Classic will be a homecoming for more than one-third of the NDSU roster. The Bison have five players from the Twin Cities area, plus freshman Jaxon Knotek from nearby River Falls, Wis.

Vinnie Shahid Jr. Minneapolis Hopkins HS
Rocky Kreuser So. White Bear Lake Totino-Grace HS
Jordan Horn So. St. Paul Tartan HS
Jarius Cook Fr. Brooklyn Park Park Center HS
Odell Wilson IV Fr. Minneapolis Minneapolis North HS

History in Minneapolis: The Bison played No. 3 seed Kansas in Minneapolis in the 2009 NCAA Tournament, with that game taking place in the Metrodome. The Jayhawks held on for an 84-74 win in front of 15,794 fans.
          NDSU last played in Minneapolis on Dec. 11, 2012 -- a 70-57 loss to 13th-ranked Minnesota at Williams Arena.

About Drake: The Bulldogs are off to a 4-1 start to the season, with Division I wins over Texas State, UMKC and Boise State. Graduate transfer guard Nick Norton leads Drake with 14.6 points and 5.2 assists per game, while senior forward Nick McGlynn is putting up 13.4 points and 8.8 rebounds per contest. The Bulldogs were picked to finish ninth in the Missouri Valley Conference this season after going 17-17 last year.

History vs. Drake: The Bison are 0-6 all-time vs. the Bulldogs, with the last meeting coming on Dec. 9, 2005 in Des Moines -- a 69-68 comeback win for Drake. The first five meetings between the schools came between 1955 and 1977.

Last Time vs. Drake: Drake came back from a seven-point deficit late in the second half to defeat NDSU 69-68 on Dec. 9, 2005, at the Knapp Center. NDSU was down 35-28 at halftime before rallying to a 64-57 lead with 5:19 to play. Drake forward Ajay Calvin's jumper from the right baseline tied it at 68.
          Drake's Sean Tracy hit one of two free throws to put the Bulldogs up 69-68 with 14 seconds left. Ben Woodside's 3-pointer under pressure from the far left corner at the final buzzer was too long. Brett Winkelman and Andre Smith both scored 16 points for NDSU.

About Iowa State: The Cyclones are 6-1 this season, with their only loss coming to Arizona at the Maui Invitational. Senior guard Marial Shayok leads Iowa State with 19.3 points per game, and junior forward Michael Jacobson is averaging 17.0 points and 7.7 rebounds per contest. The Cyclones were voted sixth in the Big 12 preseason poll.

History vs. Iowa State: The Bison are 0-5 all-time vs. the Cyclones, with the last meeting coming on Dec. 1, 2015, at Hilton Coliseum.

Last Time vs. Iowa State: The Bison lost 84-64 at No. 4/5-ranked Iowa State on Dec. 1, 2015. Iowa State was led by 21 points from Abdel Nader, and senior forward Jameel McKay posted 15 points and 19 rebounds for the Cyclones. Sophomores Paul Miller and A.J. Jacobson both scored 17 points for NDSU. Miller grabbed a career-high 10 rebounds for his first career double-double.
          The Bison battled to erase an 11-point deficit and get within two points at 50-48 on a tip-in by Dexter Werner with 12:46 to play. NDSU was still within five at 61-56 with 8:47 remaining when the Cyclones went on an 11-0 run to put the game out of reach.

Taking on the Best: NDSU's game at No. 1-ranked Gonzaga on Nov. 26 was the second time in its Division I history that the Bison took on the No. 1 team in the country. NDSU also played at No. 1 Indiana on Nov. 12, 2012.

Shahid Leads: Junior point guard Vinnie Shahid scored a season-high 16 points to lead the Bison against No. 1 Gonzaga on Nov. 26.

Nine in Double Figures: With freshman Jarius Cook scoring a season-high 10 points at East Tennessee State on Nov. 24, nine different Bison players have now scored in double figures this season.

From All Angles: 10 of the 11 Bison who have played this season have made at least one three-pointer. Rocky Kreuser, Deng Geu and Jared Samuelson are all shooting better than 42 percent from three-point range this season.

Bench Points: The Bison received 46 of their 82 points from bench players in the victory over UC Santa Barbara on Nov. 11.

Kreuser's Career Night: Bison sophomore forward Rocky Kreuser scored a career-high 23 points in the season opener at New Mexico State on Nov. 6, shooting 9-of-11 for the game and 5-for-6 from beyond the arc. It was just the third double-digit scoring performance of Kreuser's young career.

Good Run: The Bison are averaging 21 wins per season over the past six years.