Bison Women Close Road Trip at Omaha Thursday Night

Thursday, February 6

Omaha, Neb.

6 p.m.

North Dakota State Athletics

Omaha

Photo by: Ryan Workman

Bison Women Close Road Trip at Omaha Thursday Night

2/4/2020 3:35:00 PM | Women's Basketball

NDSU WBB Notes - Omaha Live Video Live Audio Live Stats

Scene Setter
The North Dakota State women's basketball team ends its three-game road trip on Thursday, Feb. 6, as the Bison travel to Omaha. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m. at Baxter Arena. Keith Brake will have the call on Bison 1660 and 92.7 FM, while the game will also be available on MidcoSN2 and ESPN+.

Omaha Series History
The Bison own a 46-19 lead in the all-time series that dates to a 64-58 Omaha victory on Feb. 8, 1980. The Mavericks have won seven of the last nine meetings. The two teams split the season series last year, with each team winning on its home floor. The Bison are looking for their first win in Omaha since defeating the Mavericks 77-60 on Jan. 22, 2015.

Bison Notes

Western Illinois outscored NDSU 26-15 in the fourth quarter Saturday night, as the Leathernecks defeated the Bison 86-79.
Junior Michelle Gaislerova led the Bison with 20 points, her 12th career game with 20 or more points. Freshman Ryan Cobbins added 14 points, her sixth-straight game in double figures.
North Dakota State outscored Purdue Fort Wayne 21-9 in the fourth quarter last week, as the Bison beat the Mastodons 58-44.
The Bison were 9-of-10 at the free throw line in the fourth quarter.
Senior Rylee 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 junior Emily 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.
North Dakota State led through three quarters in Brookings before falling 60-52 to defending Summit League Champion South Dakota State.
Gaislerova moved into third in school history in 3-pointers made, as she now has 161 after hitting five against the Jackrabbits.
North Dakota State closed the game on a 10-1 run on Jan. 19, as the Bison beat North Dakota 92-82.
Nudell notched her second career double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds against the Fighting Hawks.
Gaislerova and freshman Ryan Cobbins each had a season-high 22 points in the victory over North Dakota.
South Dakota, ranked 21st in the latest USA Today/WBCA Top 25, defeated NDSU 80-36 on Jan. 16. NDSU dropped to 0-10 in the NCAA Division I era against ranked teams.
Cobbins had a career-high 15 points in the loss against the Coyotes, while Gaislerova went over 900 points for her career.
NDSU dropped to 0-3 in the Summit League with a 70-62 loss at Oral Roberts on Jan. 8.
Nudell surpassed 800 points for her career with seven points against Oral Roberts.
Gaislerova became the fourth player in school history to hit 150 or more career 3-pointers with two against the Golden Eagles.
NDSU played the fourth double overtime game in school history Jan. 2, falling 79-78 against Western Illinois.
Nudell turned in her first career double-double with a season-high 21 points and career-high 15 rebounds. Dietz had her fifth career double-double with a season-high 24 points and 12 rebounds.
The Bison shot a season-low 54.2 percent (13-of-24) at the free throw line in the loss. NDSU was shooting 73.4 percent from the charity stripe entering the game.
NDSU opened Summit League play on Dec. 29, dropping a 91-82 contest at Denver.
Gaislerova tied a season-high with 21 points to lead the Bison against the Pioneers. It was the 10th career 20-plus point game for Gaislerova and the 50th double digit performance of her career.
The Bison closed non-conference play on Dec. 22, defeating Waldorf 92-26.
NDSU attempted 35 3-pointers, the second most in school history, while making 14, the fifth most in school history, in the win over Waldorf.
Gaislerova moved into fourth in school history with her 147th career 3-pointer against Waldorf.

Scouting Omaha

The Mavericks are 6-15 overall and 1-7 in Summit League play. Omaha is currently on a six-game losing streak.
Omaha defeated Oral Roberts 60-54 on Jan. 4 for their lone league victory.
With a 3.7 rebound advantage per game, the Mavericks rank 85th in the nation.
Mariah Murdie ranks 145th in the country with 26 blocked shots and 148th in the nation with 1.24 blocks per game.
Murdie leads the Mavericks with 9.7 points per game, while Claire Killian is second on the team with 8.3 points per game.

Last Time Against Omaha
   The North Dakota State (7-19, 4-10 Summit) women's basketball team scored a season-high 29 points in the fourth quarter, as the Bison beat Omaha (8-19, 2-12 Summit) 55-48 at the Scheels Center.
   After a 3-pointer by Rylee Nudell to start the game, not much went the way of the Bison in the first three quarters. NDSU tallied just 26 points in the first 30 minutes before the fourth quarter explosion. Omaha entered the game ranked third in the Summit League in scoring defense. Following the Nudell trey, the Mavs scored 10-straight points to take a 10-3 lead with 7:01 left in the first quarter. A layup by Danneka Voegeli with :46 left in the first half cut the Omaha lead to 23-22 at the half.
   Omaha opened the third quarter on an 11-2 run, pushing the lead to 34-24 with 1:59 to play in the frame. A jumper by Sofija Zivaljevic with 1:37 to play in the third quarter cut the lead to 34-26 going into the final 10 minutes. That's when the Bison turned it on.
   NDSU opened the fourth quarter on a 10-3 run, cutting the lead to 37-36 on a pair of Emily Dietz free throws with 7:22 to play. In a matter of 1:14, the Mavs scored seven-straight points to take a 44-36 lead with 5:45 to play. This time the Bison had a big run that Omaha couldn't answer. A free throw by Dietz, followed by seven-straight points from Zivaljevic, sparked a 13-0 run. A long ball by Nudell with 2:50 to play gave NDSU a 49-44 lead. A layup by Claire Killian with 1:54 left cut the lead to three, but NDSU hit six free throws down the stretch to seal the 55-48 victory. Nudell (11) and Zivaljevic (10) combined for 21 of NDSU's 29 fourth quarter points.
   Nudell finished with a game-high 16 points, while Zivaljevic and Dietz joined her in double figures with 13 and 11 points respectively. Kalen Phillips led the Mavs with 11 points off the bench. Marina Fernandez led the Bison with seven rebounds, while Nudell and Zivaljevic each had six, a career-high for Zivaljevic. Tyrah Spencer and Dietz each had three assists, tying a career-high for Dietz. Voegeli tied a career-high with two steals, while Dietz blocked a career-high three shots.
   NDSU was 15-of-45 (33.3%) from the field and 4-of-16 from 3-point range. The Mavs were 18-of-61 (29.5%) from the floor and 3-of-16 (18.8%) from downtown. Omaha was 9-of-15 (60%) at the free throw line, while NDSU was 21-of-27 (77.8%) at the charity stripe. The Mavs held advantages in points in the paint (28-16), points off turnovers (17-5) and second chance points (7-2).

Last Time Out
   Western Illinois used a 26-15 fourth quarter advantage Saturday night, as the Leathernecks beat the North Dakota State women's basketball team 86-79 at Western Hall.
   NDSU dropped to 6-15 overall and 3-6 in Summit League play with the loss, while Western Illinois improved to 12-11 overall and 6-4 in league play. The Leathernecks took both games in the season series, winning in double overtime in Fargo on Jan. 2.
   Five Bison scored in double figures, led by Michelle Gaislerova's 12th career 20-plus point game with 20 points. Ryan Cobbins had 14 points for her sixth-straight game in double figures, while Raquel Terrer van Gool had a career-high 12 points. Rylee Nudell and Nicole Scales each had 10 points. Olivia Kaufmann led the Leathernecks with a game-high 24 points.
   Emily Dietz had a game-high 11 rebounds, while Nudell and Gaislerova had seven and five respectively. Scales had five assists, while Cobbins added four. Dietz made her 50th-straight start, while Nudell moved into seventh in school history with her 99th career start.
   The Bison were 30-of-65 (46.2%) from the floor and 6-of-17 (35.3%) from 3-point range. Western Illinois was 29-of-71 (40.8%) from the field and 9-of-24 (37.5%) from downtown. The Leathernecks were 19-of-26 (73.1%) at the free throw line, while NDSU was 13-of-21 (61.9%). The Leathernecks had a 23-5 advantage in points off turnovers, while NDSU had a 42-23 advantage in bench points.
   With the game tied at 42-42 at halftime, NDSU opened the second half on an 8-2 run. The Bison took a 64-60 lead into the fourth quarter after Western Illinois got a pair of free throws from Kaufmann with :04 left on the clock in the third period. The Leathernecks opened the fourth quarter on a 6-0 run in less than a minute. Back-to-back baskets by Nudell and Gaislerova tied the game at 72-72 with 4:48 to play before the Leathernecks closed the game on a 14-7 run.

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 three in each of the last 18 games, including a season-high nine against Iowa State.

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.

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 Sunday, Feb. 9 against Oral Roberts. Tipoff is set for 1 p.m. at the Scheels Center.