Complete NDSU Game Notes

The Games: The North Dakota State men's basketball team will travel to Denver (10-8 overall, 1-4 Summit) and Omaha (6-11 overall, 2-3 Summit) this week for a pair of Summit League road games.
            Jan. 12           at Denver          8 p.m. CT           Altitude 2, DenverPioneers.com
            Jan. 14           at Omaha          12 p.m. CT         OMavs.com
 
Where to Watch: Both games will be streamed live on the host schools' websites. Thursday's game at Denver will also be carried on Altitude 2.
 
Radio: Rob Hipp will call the games on 107.9 The Fox and the 107.9 The Fox app. Audio of all NDSU basketball games is always streamed free at GoBison.com/AllAccess.
 
The Series vs. Denver: Thursday will be the 27th meeting between NDSU and Denver dating back to the 1993-94 season. The Bison hold a 19-7 advantage in the all-time series after winning the past nine games vs. the Pioneers, including a sweep of three meetings last season.
 
The Series vs. Omaha: Saturday will be the 89th meeting between North Dakota State and Omaha dating back to 1935-36. NDSU has a 55-33 lead in the series, including seven straight victories. The Bison swept both meetings last season, winning 71-67 in Omaha on Jan. 8 and 71-64 in Fargo on Feb. 3.
 
Settling In: Over the last three games, freshman point guard Damari Wheeler-Thomas has committed only one turnover in 98 minutes played. He scored a season-high 17 points and matched his season-high with six rebounds in the win over South Dakota on Jan. 7.
 
Expanded Role: After averaging nine minutes per game in the month of November to open the season, sophomore Jacari White has carved out a role by becoming a defensive stopper. White has played nearly 32 minutes per game in Summit League play and has scored in double-figures in 7 of the past 10 games.
 
Force In The Paint: Sophomore Andrew Morgan tied a career-high with 24 points in NDSU's win over South Dakota State on Jan. 5. He pulled down eight offensive boards – 13 rebounds total – to earn his second career double-double.
 
Late Runs: The Bison used significant second-half runs to pull out victories over South Dakota State and South Dakota. Trailing 48-41 with just under 10 minutes remaining vs. SDSU on Jan. 5, the Bison went on an 8-0 run over the next two minutes to pull ahead. On Jan. 7, South Dakota led 59-58 with five minutes left, but NDSU scored 12 unanswered points over the next four minutes to earn the win.
 
Developing Defense: In the last three games, NDSU has limited North Dakota, South Dakota State, and South Dakota to 49, 59, and 61 points, respectively. Those are the three lowest point totals allowed by the Bison against Division I opponents this season.
 
Owning the Glass: The Bison are averaging a plus-8 rebounding margin over the current three-game win streak.
 
Nelson's New Level: Grant Nelson is averaging 20.0 points and 9.2 rebounds in Summit League play.
 
Wide Variety: The Bison have used 8 different starting lineups in the last 10 games. In 17 total games this season, NDSU has used 10 different starting lineups. Seven different players have led the team in scoring.
 
Win Streak Started at UND: The Bison have now won 9 of the past 11 games against North Dakota following a 71-49 blowout victory on Dec. 30 in Grand Forks. NDSU drained 10-of-21 from three-point range and dominated the glass, posting a 41-27 rebounding margin.
 
Career Game: Grant Nelson set new career-highs in points (35) and rebounds (16) at Western Illinois on Dec. 19 -- the most points by a Bison since January 2018 (Paul Miller & Cameron Hunter), and the most rebounds by a Bison since December 2014 (Dexter Werner).
 
Rare Feat: With his career-best performance at Western Illinois on Dec. 19, Grant Nelson became only the second player over the last 25 years with at least 35 points and 16 rebounds in a Summit League game. Since the 1996-97 season, only South Dakota State's Mike Daum has also accomplished that feat.
 
Youth Quantified: NDSU has no seniors on the roster this season, and 7 of the top 10 players in terms of minutes played this year are freshmen or sophomores.