Bison Women Travel to North Dakota in Key Summit League Game

Sunday, February 23

Grand Forks, N.D.

2 p.m.

North Dakota State Athletics

North Dakota

Photo by: Carrie Snyder

Bison Women Travel to North Dakota in Key Summit League Game

2/21/2020 3:20:00 PM | Women's Basketball

NDSU WBB Notes - North Dakota Live Video Live Audio Live Stats

Scene Setter
The North Dakota State women's basketball team hits the road for the final time in the regular season to North Dakota on Sunday, Feb. 23. Tipoff is set for 2 p.m. at the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center. The game will be broadcast on MidcoSN2 and ESPN+. Keith Brake will have the call on Bison 1660 and 92.7 FM. Both teams enter the game tied for sixth in the Summit League standings with three games remaining.

North Dakota Series History
The Fighting Hawks own a 48-39 advantage in the all-time series that dates back to a 59-56 NDSU win on Jan. 14, 1967. NDSU has won two of the last three meetings after dropping eight-straight games in the series. The Bison won 92-82 at the Scheels Center on Jan. 19. Last year, the two teams split games, with each team winning on its home floor.

Bison Notes

NDSU allowed a season-high 96 points on Thursday night, as 15th-ranked South Dakota defeated NDSU 96-57.
Junior Michelle Gaislerova scored in double-figures for the fifth-straight game, and 20th time this season, to lead the Bison with 15 points.
Gaislerova extended her NCAA Division I women's basketball consecutive free throws made streak to 74 with a pair against South Dakota.
Gaislerova scored a game-high 18 points in NDSU's 74-53 victory over Purdue Fort Wayne last week.
Gaislerova became the 34th member of the 1,000 point club early in the first quarter. She is the seventh member during the NCAA Division I era. Late in the first quarter, Gaislerova hit her 71st-straight free throw, breaking the NCAA Division I record for most consecutive free throws made.
Senior Rylee Nudell recorded her fifth double-double of the season, as NDSU fell 80-76 in overtime against Oral Roberts. Nudell finished with 22 points and 11 rebounds.
Oral Roberts' Keni Jo Lippe set a Bison Sports Arena/Scheels Center record with 46 points for the Golden Eagles. It was also a Summit League record and was the most points scored by a player in NCAA Division I women's basketball this year until this past weekend.
Freshman Ryan Cobbins had 15 points, as she reached double digits for the eighth-straight game.
Four Bison scored in double figures, as NDSU beat Omaha 74-65 at Baxter Arena.
Nudell became the seventh player in school history to start 100 games, while her 12 points gave her the 40th double digit scoring game of her career.
Cobbins scored in double figures for the seventh-straight game with 12 points. Junior Emily Dietz went over 600 points for her career.
Western Illinois outscored NDSU 26-15 in the fourth quarter, as the Leathernecks defeated the Bison 86-79.
Gaislerova led the Bison with 20 points, her 12th career game with 20 or more points. Cobbins added 14 points, her sixth-straight game in double figures.
North Dakota State outscored Purdue Fort Wayne 21-9 in the fourth quarter, as the Bison beat the Mastodons 58-44.
The Bison were 9-of-10 at the free throw line in the fourth quarter.
Nudell turned in her fourth career double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds, notching her fourth double-double in the last seven games.
North Dakota State defeated Denver 85-80 in overtime at the Scheels Center on Jan. 26. It was the first overtime victory for NDSU since beating Oral Roberts 75-72 on March 1, 2008.
Nudell and Dietz each had a double-double for the Bison. Dietz finished with 21 points and a career-high 13 rebounds, while Nudell had 18 points and 12 rebounds.

Scouting North Dakota

The Fighting Hawks are 14-12 overall and 5-8 in the Summit League. North Dakota has dropped four-straight games since defeating Purdue Fort Wayne 63-49 on Feb. 1.
North Dakota ranks 33rd in the country with 41.58 rebounds per game and 25th with 1,081 total rebounds on the year. With a 3.2 rebounding margin per game, the Fighting Hawks rank 94th in the country.
Melissa Leet ranks 55th in the nation and second in the Summit League with 44 blocked shots this season.
Alaina Jarnot ranks 97th in the country with 106 assists this year, which is also the third most in the league.

Gaislerova Joins 1,000 Point Club
   Junior Michelle Gaislerova scored 18 points last week against Purdue Fort Wayne, becoming the 34th member of the 1,000 point club. Needing just one point to start the game, Gaislerova scored the opening basket of the game. She is the seventh player to have done so with all years being played during the NCAA Division I era.

A New 3-Point Streak
   The Bison went 0-of-14 from 3-point range against Valparaiso on Nov. 15, ending a streak of 113-straight games with at least two 3-pointers. The last time NDSU didn't hit a 3-pointer in a game was Nov. 29, 2015 against Delaware. Since the game against Valparaiso, the Bison have hit at least two in each of the last 22 games, including a season-high 14 against Waldorf.

Gaislerova Makes NCAA History
   With her third made free throw against Purdue Fort Wayne, junior Michelle Gaislerova broke the NCAA Division I women's record for most consecutive free throws made with 71. Gaislerova currently sits at 74-straight made free throws. Her total is the third longest streak in all NCAA women's divisions.

Collins Earns 200th Career Victory
   With NDSU's win over New Hampshire on Dec. 1, head coach Jory Collins earned his 200th career victory. In his ninth season overall as a head coach, Collins earned his first win on Nov. 13, 2010, as Emporia State beat Tulsa 68-64. His 100th career win came on Nov. 25, 2014, as Emporia State beat Henderson State 93-53.

Last Time Against North Dakota
   The North Dakota State women's basketball team used a 10-1 run in the final 2:23, as the Bison beat rival North Dakota 92-82 at the Scheels Center. NDSU improved to 4-13 on the year and 1-4 in Summit League play with the victory, while North Dakota dropped to 12-7 overall and 3-3 in league play.
   Michelle Gaislerova and Ryan Cobbins led the Bison with a season-high 22 points apiece. It was the 11th career 20-plus point game for Gaislerova, while she moved into a tie for third in school history with 156 career 3-pointers. Sofija Zivaljevic had 15 points, while Rylee Nudell had 11. Zivaljevic was 11-for-11 at the free throw line, becoming the 16th player in school history to be perfect at the line with over 10 attempts in a game. Julia Fleecs led the Fighting Hawks with 18 points. Nudell had a game-high 11 points and a season-high four assists, as she notched her second career double-double. Zivaljevic had six rebounds, while Cobbins added three steals.
   The Bison were 27-of-54 from the field and 6-of-16 (37.5%) from 3-point range. North Dakota was 23-of-61 (37.7%) from the floor and 7-of-19 (36.8%) from downtown. Both teams frequented the free throw line, with the Bison going 32-of-38 (84.2%) and the Fighting Hawks going 29-of-33 (87.9%). NDSU was just 1-of-6 from the floor in the fourth quarter, but went 15-of-18 at the free throw line.
   NDSU jumped out to a 5-0 lead in the first minute of the game. A late 9-2 run gave NDSU a 23-19 lead after the first quarter. North Dakota took its first lead of the game with 8:21 to play in the first half, but held the lead for just 1:07. The Bison used an 18-6 run over a 4:57 span in the second quarter to take a 49-41 lead at the break. NDSU's largest lead came at 62-49 with 4:44 to play in the third quarter after a free throw from Olivia Skibiel. The Bison led by 10 with 9:30 to play before the Fighting Hawks went on a 9-0 run to cut the lead to 77-76 with 7:16 to play. NDSU led 82-81 following a 3-pointer by Lilly Keplin with 4:58 to play. That would be the final basket of the game for North Dakota, as the Bison closed the game on a 10-1 run, getting only a layup from Emily Dietz with 1:19 to play in the game with the rest of the points coming at the free throw line.

Last Time Out
   South Dakota raced out to a 12-0 lead Thursday night and never looked back, as the Coyotes beat the North Dakota State women's basketball team 96-57. The Coyotes entered the game ranked 15th in the USA Today/WBCA Poll and 20th in the Associated Press Top 25. South Dakota is also the top-ranked team in the CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Poll.
   The Bison dropped to 8-17 overall and 5-8 in Summit League play. South Dakota improved to 25-2 overall and 14-0 in league play. The Bison clinched a spot in the Summit League Tournament with the win, while South Dakota clinched at least a share of the Summit League title.
   Michelle Gaislerova led the Bison with 15 points, while Ryan Cobbins joined her in double figures with 10 points. It was the fifth-straight game in double figures for Gaislerova. With a pair of free throws, Gaislerova extended her NCAA Division I women's basketball record to 74 consecutive free throws made. Sofija Zivaljevic added nine points. Danneka Voegeli led the Bison with six rebounds, while Olivia Skibiel grabbed four. Zivaljevic had a pair of assists.
   With the Coyotes up 20-10, NDSU went on an 8-3 run to cut the lead to 23-18 with :30 left in the quarter. Just like the start of the game, South Dakota opened the second quarter on an 11-0 run, extending the lead to double figures for the remainder of the game. South Dakota took its largest lead of the game at 93-51 with 3:12 to play.
   The Coyotes 96 points were the most points allowed by the Bison this season. NDSU dropped to 0-11 in the NCAA Division I era against teams ranked in the top 25.

NDSU Women's Basketball Picked Seventh In Summit League Preseason Poll
   The North Dakota State Bison women's basketball team was voted seventh in the Summit League preseason poll released by the league office. South Dakota was tabbed the preseason favorite with 20 first-place votes, while South Dakota State was picked second with 13 first-place votes. Denver, picked for third, received the remaining first place vote.

MidcoSN to Televise 17 NDSU Women's Basketball Games in 2019-20
   Midco has announced that 17 NDSU women's basketball games during the 2019-20 season will be broadcast on the Midco Sports Network. All games will either be on MidcoSN or MidcsoSN2. In addition, all 17 Midco games, along with games at Northern Iowa and Bradley, will either be available on ESPN+ or ESPN3.

Bison Sign Three on National Signing Day
   NDSU will add a pair of high school players, while also getting a junior college transfer, head coach Jory Collins announced on Wednesday, Nov. 14.
   Abigail Schulte, a 5-10 guard from Maple Grove, Minn., Kylie Strop, a 5-7 guard from River Falls, Wis. and Reneya Hopkins, a 5-7 junior college transfer from Redlands Community College have all signed during the first signing day for Collins.
   An all-conference junior college performer, Hopkins averaged 14.4 points, 5.3 assists, 2.0 steals and 1.0 blocks during her freshman year at RCC. An all-state selection as a junior, Schulte averaged 12.4 points, 4.7 rebounds and 2.2 assists as a junior. Strop is the all-time leader in scoring and steals at River Falls High School, averaging 19.7 points, 8.8 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 3.0 steals as a junior.

On The Horizon
   NDSU returns home on Thursday, Feb. 27 for a game against defending Summit League Champion South Dakota State. Tipoff is set for 5 p.m. at the Scheels Center. The game is part of a doubleheader with the NDSU men, with that game against the Jackrabbits set to start 8 p.m.