THIS WEEK         
The North Dakota State (11-2) women's basketball team is set to open Summit League play at Oral Roberts (7-6) on Thursday at 7:00 p.m. The Bison will close out the trip at Denver (6-7) on Saturday at 1:00 p.m. CT
 
GAME COVERAGE
Watch: Both games will broadcast on the Summit League Network for subscribers.
 
Radio: Andy Rieckhoff (play-by-play) will be on the call for both games on Bison 1660 with pregame coverage starting 30 minutes prior to tip-off. 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 wrapped up non-conference play with a 94-36 win over Saint Mary's on Monday night at Scheels Center to extend their win streak to nine games. Five players reached double digits in scoring with Avery Koenen leading the way with a game-high 19 points and seven rebounds.
 
SUMMIT LEAGUE PLAY IS HERE
NDSU has won each of its last four Summit League openers and is 4-2 under seventh-year head coach Jory Collins. Last season, the Bison topped St. Thomas on the road, 73-59, to begin league play. Avery Koenen tallied 13 points with 11 rebounds, while Abby Krzewinski netted 12 points with four rebounds.
 
THE SERIES VS. ORAL ROBERTS
This will be the 36th all-time meeting between NDSU and Oral Roberts dating back to 2006 with the Golden Eagles leading the series, 23-12. NDSU is 6-4 against Oral Roberts in the last 10 meetings and most recently fell short in Tulsa last season, 100-84. The Bison haven't won in Tulsa since 2009 and are 1-15 all-time in road matchups in the series.
 
THE SERIES VS. DENVER
This will be the 33rd all-time meeting between NDSU and Denver dating back to 1987 with the Bison leading the series, 64-59. NDSU has won each of the last five meeting in the series, including a 64-59 win in Denver last season.
 
ROLLED THROUGH NON-CON PLAY
The Bison assembled an 11-2 overall record in non-conference play to start the season, including a 6-0 mark in the month of December. It marked the best start to a season since 2004-05 when NDSU won each of its first 24 games before falling short at TCU on Feb. 22, 2005.
 
NINE STRAIGHT
The Bison enter the week on a season-best nine-game win streak, which is their longest in the NDSU Division I era and since 2004-05 when the Bison assembled a 24-game win streak. The nine-game win streak also ranks tied for the third-longest in the nation among mid-major programs, joining UC Santa Barbara (Big West) and Arkansas State (Sun Belt). Princeton (Ivey League) and UC Irvine (Big West) lead the group with a 10-game win streak.
 
EXTRA WIN STREAK NUGGETS
- The nine-game win streak has spanned five states (North Dakota, Florida, Utah, Illinois and California).
- Avery Koenen is averaging 18.5 points and 9.9 rebounds per game over the stretch.
- The Bison have never trailed in four of the nine wins.
- NDSU has held the lead for 33+ minutes in seven of the nine wins.
- The Bison are averaging 79.4 points per game over the span.
- NDSU is outscoring opponents by 18.1 points per game in the streak.
 
HANDLING BUSINESS ON THE ROAD
For the first time since the 2004-05 season, the Bison have started the season with a 4-0 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
For the fourth straight week, the Bison have been ranked in the College Insider Mid-Major Top 25 Poll. NDSU stayed at No. 15 this week for the second consecutive week.
 
BENCH PRODUCTION
The NDSU bench has netted 20 or more points in eight games this season. Karrington Asp has come off the bench in all 13 games and has contributed 12.2 points with 5.4 rebounds over 20.4 minutes per game.
 
EFFICIENT SHOOTING
The Bison enter the week shooting 48.0 percent from the field, which ranks 19th in the nation. NDSU has shot 40.0 percent or better from the field in 11 of its first 13 games. LSU leads the nation shooting 54.8 percent.
 
LOCKDOWN DEFENSE
The Bison have held four opponents to under 50 points this season, including limiting Saint Mary's and 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. UNI (49), Campbell (49), Bethune-Cookman (36) and Saint Mary's (36) were all held below 50 points this season.
 
ONE OF THE BEST IN THE NATION
Avery Koenen is slotted inside the top 25 nationally in multiple categories: field goal percentage (4th, 65.9), double-doubles (5th, 8), free throws attempts (6th, 93), defensive rebounds per game (18th, 7.5), free throws (14th, 66) and rebounds (21st, 129). Koenen has reached double digits in scoring in all 13 games this season and in each of her last 20 games stretching back to last season. She has also put together a streak of six straight games with a double-double earlier this season.
 
PEAK PERFORMER OF THE WEEK
Avery Koenen was named the Summit League Peak Performer of the Week for the second straight week and third time overall this season on Dec. 23. She averaged 20.0 points with 11.0 rebounds and helped the Bison to a 2-0 record at the Malibu Classic.
 
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.
 
KOENEN MILESTONE WATCH
Avery Koenen has surpassed the 900 points and 500 rebounds in her third season. She enters the week 86 points away from the 1,000 career points mark.
 
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 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 41-6 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 109-84 overall record. His 109 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 308-142 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.
 
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.
 
UP NEXT
NDSU will host Kansas City on Thursday, January 8. Tip-off is set for 7:00 p.m., inside the Scheels Center at the Sanford Health Athletic Complex.