THIS WEEK         
The North Dakota State (8-2) women's basketball team travels to Pepperdine (7-2) on Tuesday at 4:00 p.m. CT for the Malibu Classic. The Bison finish the trip against UTRGV (3-5) on Wednesday at 4:00 p.m. CT. Both games will be hosted by Pepperdine at Firestone Fieldhouse.
 
GAME COVERAGE
Watch: Only the game against Pepperdine will broadcast on ESPN+ for subscribers.
 
Radio: Andy Rieckhoff (play-by-play) will be on the call on Bison 1660 for both games with pregame coverage beginning at 3:30 p.m. CT each day. Fans can also listen to the radio broadcast for free on GoBison.com/allaccess and the NDSU Athletics mobile app.
 
GoBison.com: Live statistics, video and audio links are available on GoBison.com/coverage.
 
BISON BASKETBALL RADIO COACHES SHOW
The Bison Basketball Radio Show with NDSU men's basketball head coach David Richman and women's basketball head coach Jory Collins will broadcast live on Bison 1660 from the Holiday Inn Fargo on Mondays throughout the season from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. Fans are invited to attend in-person and submit questions for the show as hosts Sam Neidermann and Andy Rieckhoff break down the week of Bison basketball and preview the upcoming games. The show airs the following dates in December: Dec. 1, Dec. 8 and Dec. 30 (Tuesday).
 
BISON BASKETBALL TV COACHES SHOW
Join host Sam Neidermann, men's basketball head coach David Richman and women's basketball head coach Jory Collins for highlights, analysis and feature stories throughout the season on The Bison Basketball Show airing at 9:30 p.m. on Wednesdays and 6:30 p.m. on Thursdays on WDAY Xtra beginning on Nov. 26.
 
LAST TIME OUT
The Bison picked up their sixth straight win after topping Eastern Illinois, 83-55, on Thursday night. Avery Koenen led the way with a game-high 22 points and career-best 16 rebounds for her fourth straight double-double. Karrington Asp added 16 points off the bench with three rebounds, while Marisa Frost netted 14 points with four steals, two rebounds and two assists.
 
THE SERIES VS. PEPPERDINE
This will be the first all-time meeting between NDSU and Pepperdine. It will also be the second West Coast Conference (WCC) opponent the Bison have faced this season after falling short against Gonzaga, 81-66, back on Nov. 7 in Fargo.
 
THE SERIES VS. UTRGV
This will be the fifth all-time meeting between UTRGV and NDSU dating back to 2007 with the Vaqueros leading the series, 3-1. UTRGV has won each of the last two meetings, including an 82-79 win in Fargo in 2017.
 
SIX STRAIGHT
The Bison enter the week on a season-best six-game win streak, which is the longest streak since winning eight straight during the 2023-24 season and the longest current win streak in the Summit League. Over that span, NDSU is averaging 81.8 points per game and outscoring its opponents by 23.7 points. Avery Koenen is also averaging a double-double with a team-best 18.7 points and 11.2 rebounds per game.
 
HANDLING BUSINESS ON THE ROAD
For the first time since the 2004-05 season, the Bison have started the season with a 3-0 mark in true road games. NDSU won each of its first seven road games to begin the 2004-05 season.
 
COLLEGE INSIDER MID-MAJOR TOP 25 POLL
The Bison entered the College Insider Mid-Major Top 25 Poll last week at No. 23. It's the first time NDSU has been ranked in the poll since 2023 after receiving votes for each of the first five weeks this season.
 
THE THREE BALL IS FALLING AGAIN
After the Bison started the season shooting 23.9 percent from three over the first four games, NDSU has improved to shooting 43.6 percent from beyond the arc over the last six games. The Bison netted a season-best 11 triples in the win over Montana State.
 
BENCH PRODUCTION
The NDSU bench has netted 20 or more points in each of the last four games and six total times this season. Karrington Asp has come off the bench in all 10 games and has contributed 11.9 points with 5.3 rebounds over 19.1 minutes per game.
 
LOCKDOWN DEFENSE
The Bison have held three opponents to under 50 points this season, including limiting Bethune-Cookman to a season-low 36 points. It marked the lowest point total NDSU has held an opponent to since Jamestown scored 36 points on Dec. 19, 2021. NDSU has limited three opponents to 50 points or less this season (UNI - 49, Campbell - 49, Bethune-Cookman - 36).
 
ONE OF THE BEST IN THE NATION
Avery Koenen is shooting a team-best 69.1 percent from the field this season, which leads the Summit League and ranks third in the nation. Gracie Merkle (Penn St.) leads the nation shooting 74.2 percent from the field. Koenen has reached double digits in scoring in all 10 games this season and in each of her last 17 games stretching back to last season. Koenen also leads the Summit League and ranks eighth in the nation with six double-doubles this season.
 
PEAK PERFORMER OF THE WEEK
Avery Koenen posted her second straight 20-point game with 22 points on 8-of-11 shooting from the field and 6-of-8 from the free throw line in the win over Tulane. She also grabbed a game-high 13 rebounds for her second double-double of the season and tied a career-best five assists against the Green Wave. Koenen was named the Summit League Peak Performer of the Week for the first time this season on Nov. 25.
 
KOENEN AGAINST THE HUSKERS
Avery Koenen netted a game-high 26 points after connecting on a season-best 11 field goals on 15 attempts against Nebraska. She also hauled in a game-best nine rebounds over a season-high 35 minutes of action. Her 26 points against Nebraska were the most points for a Bison player against a power four opponent since Emily Moran netted 28 points against Minnesota on Nov. 20, 2007.
 
SUMMIT LEAGUE PRESEASON POLL       
For the second time in the last three seasons, NDSU was picked to finish second in the Summit League Preseason Poll. The Bison garnered 498 total points with two first-place votes to earn the second spot. South Dakota State was picked first with 558 points and 34 first-place votes, while Oral Roberts closed out the top three with 410 points in third place.
 
All-SUMMIT LEAGUE PRESEASON TEAM
Avery Koenen and Jocelyn Schiller were selected to the All-Summit League Preseason First Team, while Marisa Frost was named to the All-Summit League Preseason Second Team. Koenen averaged 17.0 points and 8.1 rebounds per game in Summit League play last season. On the defensive end, she was slotted third in league play with 17 total blocks. Schiller was named the Summit League Freshman of the Year and earned a spot on the All-Summit League Freshman Team last season at North Dakota. She averaged 13.2 points with 4.1 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game for the Fighting Hawks. Frost averaged 28.8 minutes per game to go along with 10.1 points per game. Her 10.1 points per game ranked third on the team in Summit League play and she reached double figures in nine games.
 
KOENEN ON PRESEASON WATCH LIST FOR MID-MAJOR PLAYER OF THE YEAR AWARD
Avery Koenen was named to the preseason watch list for the 2026 Becky Hammon Mid-Major Player of the Year Award this season. Koenen becomes the first player in Bison history to earn a spot on the 25-player preseason watch list. She's also one of only two players in the Summit League to earn the preseason recognition, joining Brooklyn Meyer from South Dakota State.
 
ANOTHER 20-WIN SEASON
The Bison have reached the 20-win mark each of the last two seasons after posting a 21-12 overall record last season. It marked the first time NDSU has assembled back-to-back 20-win seasons under head coach Jory Collins and first since posting three straight from 2002-05.
 
BATTLE TESTED
Following its third straight appearance in the WNIT last season, NDSU has played extended seasons deep into March. The Bison played a combined 33 games last season, tied for the second-longest season in program history. After recording the longest season in program history in 2023-24 with 34 total games, NDSU has combined to play a total of 77 games over the last two seasons. NDSU boasts a 43-24 record over that span.
 
SCHEDULE TIDBITS
The Bison are set to play 29 total regular season games with 13 games inside the Scheels Center at the Sanford Health Athletic Complex. NDSU will play 13 non-conference contests and will face five opponents that participated in a postseason tournament last season, including Northern Iowa, Gonzaga, Nebraska, Campbell and Montana State. NDSU will open the 16-game Summit League schedule at Oral Roberts on Jan. 1.
 
OUR HOUSE
NDSU posted a 13-3 record inside Scheels Center last season. The Bison have won at least 13 home games in back-to-back seasons for the first time since assembling a streak of 11 straight from 1994-05. NDSU is a combined 40-6 over the last four seasons at Scheels Center, including a 13-1 mark in 2023-24.
 
THE HEAD COACH
Head coach Jory Collins is in his seventh season at NDSU and has led the Bison to back-to-back 20-win seasons. He recently reached the 100-win mark with a 106-84 overall record. His 106 wins are the most in the NDSU Division I era and the second-most in Bison history behind Amy Ruley (671 wins). Collins also reached the 300 career win mark with a 305-142 overall record, which includes eight seasons at Emporia State from 2010-18. Collins is the second-longest tenured coach in the Summit League in his seventh season.
 
Under Collins, the Bison made their first-ever appearance in the Summit League Championship game in 2024 and three straight appearances in WNIT. NDSU has also had at least one All-Summit League First Team and an All-Summit League Freshman Team selection each of the last two seasons.
 
RETURNING ALL-SUMMIT LEAGUE PLAYERS
NDSU returns three All-Summit League selections this season. Avery Koenen was selected to the All-Summit League First Team for the first time in her career last season. Molly Lenz earned a spot on the Summit League All-Newcomer Team and Marisa Frost was tabbed to the Summit League All-Freshman Team.
 
SCHILLER JOINS THE BISON
After spending her freshman season at North Dakota, Jocelyn Schiller transferred to NDSU last spring. She was named the Summit League Freshman of the Year and earned a spot on the All-Summit League Freshman Team last season. She averaged 13.2 points with 4.1 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game for the Fighting Hawks. Schiller started all 31 games and led all freshmen in the Summit League with a team-high 89 assists and team-best 40 steals. She also averaged 16.3 points per game in Summit League play, which led all freshmen.
 
FRESH FACES IN FARGO
NDSU welcomed three transfers to the roster over offseason with additions of Jocelyn Schiller, Lily Niebuhr and Audrey Martinez-Stewart. Niebuhr appeared in 55 games over three seasons at Indiana State after taking a medical redshirt last season. Martinez-Stewart started all 57 games she appeared in over two seasons at Missouri-St. Louis.
 
YOUNG BISON
The Bison added three freshman to the roster with the addition of Sophie Hawkinson, McKenna Johnson and Karrington Asp. Hawkinson was the as the ninth-ranked prospect in Minnesota according to Prep Girls Hoops, while Johnson was the second-ranked prospect in North Dakota according to Prep Girls Hoops. Asp enters her redshirt freshman season after joining the Bison last January as an early enrollee.
 
STERN ANNOUNCES MEDICAL RETIREMENT
Claire Stern announced in September that she will no longer pursue playing career for the Bison and will medically retire from basketball. Stern appeared in 32 games off the bench and logged 13.7 minutes per game in her freshman season. 
 
UP NEXT
NDSU wraps up non-conference play hosting Saint Mary's on Monday, Dec. 29. Tip-off is set for 5:00 p.m., at Scheels Center.