Thursday, January 2
Fargo, N.D.
8 p.m.
North Dakota State
vs
Western Illinois
Photo by: Tim Sanger
12/31/2019 4:16:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Complete NDSU Game Notes
Jan. 2 vs. WIU Watch | Listen | Live Stats
Jan. 5 vs. Northland Watch | Listen | Live Stats
The Games: The North Dakota State men's basketball team (9-5 overall, 1-0 Summit) hosts Western Illinois and Northland College this week inside the Scheels Center on the NDSU campus.
Thursday, Jan. 2 vs. Western Illinois 8 p.m.
Sunday, Jan. 5 vs. Northland College 2 p.m.
Where to Watch: Thursday's game will be broadcast on Midco Sports Network and streamed on ESPN+, as well as being streamed live on GoBison.com/allaccess. Brian Shawn (play-by-play) and Greg Stemen (analyst) will call the action.
Sunday's game vs. Northland will only be streamed on GoBison.com/allaccess.
Radio: Both 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 and Jeremy Jorgenson will call the action.
All Bison conference games will also be carried on KYCR 1440 AM in the Twin Cities.
About Western Illinois: The Leathernecks come to Fargo with a record of 4-7 overall and a 1-0 start to league play after beating South Dakota 82-75 in Macomb on Dec. 29.
Junior guard Kobe Webster leads Western Illinois with 16.2 points per game this season. Sophomore guard Zion Young is averaging 14.5 points and 5.4 rebounds per contest. As a team, WIU ranks third nationally in free throw percentage (80.1 percent) and 20th in the country in three-point shooting (38.8 percent).
The Leathernecks went 10-21 overall and 4-12 in The Summit League last year.
History with Western Illinois: Thursday will be the 28th game between NDSU and Western Illinois dating back to 2007-08. NDSU holds a 19-8 lead in the all-time series. The Bison have won 13 of the last 14 vs. the Leathernecks after sweeping all three meetings last season.
Last Time vs. Western Illinois: The fourth-seeded Bison held off No. 8 seed Western Illinois in the semifinals of the Summit League Tournament on March 11 last season, advancing to the championship game with a 76-73 win.
Freshman Sam Griesel scored a season-high 20 points and grabbed five rebounds to lead NDSU in both categories. Vinnie Shahid added 14 points and three assists. The Bison made 14-of-26 shots from three-point range, as nine different players hit from beyond the arc.
NDSU went up by 15 points at 34-19 less than 12 minutes into the game. The Leathernecks battled back to cut the deficit to 49-40 at halftime.
C.J. Duff hit a three-pointer to put the Leathernecks up 67-65 with 8:47 left, but Cameron Hunter answered with a trey for NDSU on the next possession, and the Bison never relinquished that lead. Griesel made a three from the top of the key to put NDSU ahead 76-71 with 3:29 on the clock.
WIU had two shots to tie the game with a three on the final possession, but missed both. NDSU led for 35 of the 40 minutes. The Bison committed just five turnovers in the game.
Heating Up: Although NDSU shot just under 30 percent from three-point range over the first seven games of the season, the Bison have improved to 38 percent from beyond the arc over the past five games.
Lockdown D: Prior to the 82 points allowed at Marquette on Dec. 20, the Bison had only allowed 70 points in a game twice this season – in a 76-70 win over UT Rio Grande Valley on Nov. 15, and in the 71-60 loss at Indiana State on Dec. 3.
Best Week in the League: Tyson Ward had the best week in The Summit League from Dec. 16-22, averaging 22 points and 11 rebounds to lead the conference in both categories. He shot 58 percent overall and posted a 5-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio.
Ball Security: Junior guard Cameron Hunter owns a 30-to-9 assist-to-turnover ratio this season.
Stat Sheet Filler: In addition to ranking second on the Bison in scoring, senior Tyson Ward leads the team in rebounds, assists and blocks.
Over the Past 5 Games:
Road Dubs: Following the victory at Denver on Dec. 29, the Bison have four road wins already this season. Last year, NDSU didn't get its first victory on the road until Jan. 26, and finished the season with four road wins.
Limited Turnovers: NDSU ranks 4th in the nation this season for fewest turnovers committed per game (10.3).
Defense First: The Bison have the top scoring defense in The Summit League this season, allowing only 63.6 points per game.
Long Distance Duo: Jared Samuelson (42.3%) and Cameron Hunter (41.2%) rank sixth and ninth, respectively, on the NDSU career three-point percentage list.
Ward Boards: Tyson Ward ranks 16th on the NDSU career rebounding list with 598 boards.
Jan. 2 vs. WIU Watch | Listen | Live Stats
Jan. 5 vs. Northland Watch | Listen | Live Stats
The Games: The North Dakota State men's basketball team (9-5 overall, 1-0 Summit) hosts Western Illinois and Northland College this week inside the Scheels Center on the NDSU campus.
Thursday, Jan. 2 vs. Western Illinois 8 p.m.
Sunday, Jan. 5 vs. Northland College 2 p.m.
Where to Watch: Thursday's game will be broadcast on Midco Sports Network and streamed on ESPN+, as well as being streamed live on GoBison.com/allaccess. Brian Shawn (play-by-play) and Greg Stemen (analyst) will call the action.
Sunday's game vs. Northland will only be streamed on GoBison.com/allaccess.
Radio: Both 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 and Jeremy Jorgenson will call the action.
All Bison conference games will also be carried on KYCR 1440 AM in the Twin Cities.
About Western Illinois: The Leathernecks come to Fargo with a record of 4-7 overall and a 1-0 start to league play after beating South Dakota 82-75 in Macomb on Dec. 29.
Junior guard Kobe Webster leads Western Illinois with 16.2 points per game this season. Sophomore guard Zion Young is averaging 14.5 points and 5.4 rebounds per contest. As a team, WIU ranks third nationally in free throw percentage (80.1 percent) and 20th in the country in three-point shooting (38.8 percent).
The Leathernecks went 10-21 overall and 4-12 in The Summit League last year.
History with Western Illinois: Thursday will be the 28th game between NDSU and Western Illinois dating back to 2007-08. NDSU holds a 19-8 lead in the all-time series. The Bison have won 13 of the last 14 vs. the Leathernecks after sweeping all three meetings last season.
Last Time vs. Western Illinois: The fourth-seeded Bison held off No. 8 seed Western Illinois in the semifinals of the Summit League Tournament on March 11 last season, advancing to the championship game with a 76-73 win.
Freshman Sam Griesel scored a season-high 20 points and grabbed five rebounds to lead NDSU in both categories. Vinnie Shahid added 14 points and three assists. The Bison made 14-of-26 shots from three-point range, as nine different players hit from beyond the arc.
NDSU went up by 15 points at 34-19 less than 12 minutes into the game. The Leathernecks battled back to cut the deficit to 49-40 at halftime.
C.J. Duff hit a three-pointer to put the Leathernecks up 67-65 with 8:47 left, but Cameron Hunter answered with a trey for NDSU on the next possession, and the Bison never relinquished that lead. Griesel made a three from the top of the key to put NDSU ahead 76-71 with 3:29 on the clock.
WIU had two shots to tie the game with a three on the final possession, but missed both. NDSU led for 35 of the 40 minutes. The Bison committed just five turnovers in the game.
Heating Up: Although NDSU shot just under 30 percent from three-point range over the first seven games of the season, the Bison have improved to 38 percent from beyond the arc over the past five games.
Lockdown D: Prior to the 82 points allowed at Marquette on Dec. 20, the Bison had only allowed 70 points in a game twice this season – in a 76-70 win over UT Rio Grande Valley on Nov. 15, and in the 71-60 loss at Indiana State on Dec. 3.
Best Week in the League: Tyson Ward had the best week in The Summit League from Dec. 16-22, averaging 22 points and 11 rebounds to lead the conference in both categories. He shot 58 percent overall and posted a 5-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio.
Ball Security: Junior guard Cameron Hunter owns a 30-to-9 assist-to-turnover ratio this season.
Stat Sheet Filler: In addition to ranking second on the Bison in scoring, senior Tyson Ward leads the team in rebounds, assists and blocks.
Over the Past 5 Games:
- Vinnie Shahid is averaging 18.6 points per game & shooting 50% from three-point range.
- Tyson Ward is averaging 18.2 points and 9.0 rebounds per game while shooting 58%.
- Tyler Witz has made 11-of-14 shots (78%).
Road Dubs: Following the victory at Denver on Dec. 29, the Bison have four road wins already this season. Last year, NDSU didn't get its first victory on the road until Jan. 26, and finished the season with four road wins.
Limited Turnovers: NDSU ranks 4th in the nation this season for fewest turnovers committed per game (10.3).
Defense First: The Bison have the top scoring defense in The Summit League this season, allowing only 63.6 points per game.
Long Distance Duo: Jared Samuelson (42.3%) and Cameron Hunter (41.2%) rank sixth and ninth, respectively, on the NDSU career three-point percentage list.
Ward Boards: Tyson Ward ranks 16th on the NDSU career rebounding list with 598 boards.
Players Mentioned
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/ Men's BasketballTuesday, November 03
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