GRAND FORKS, N.D. – Head Coach Brian Jones has adopted the mantra of "We over Me" this season for his team, and the University of North Dakota men's basketball team executed it perfectly in a 83-72 victory over Milwaukee on Sunday afternoon at the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center.
 
Four players reached double figures in the win for the Fighting Hawks (5-5), led by Cortez Seales and his 19 points. The senior has crossed the 10-point plateau in eight of the first 10 games this season, matching his previous yearly high at Utah Valley. Seales connected on 8-of-12 shots from the field while also adding a trio of rebounds, two assists, and a career-high five steals.
 
Aanen Moody finished just two points shy of matching his career high as the redshirt freshman poured in 18 points on three makes from downtown. The Dickinson, N.D., native also had a personal-best four boards and connected on 5-of-6 from the charity stripe.
 
Joining the scoring barrage from the bench was Kienan Walter with 14 points on a near-perfect 3-of-4 day from the field. The junior also hit all six of his foul shots, made two shots from distance, and grabbed four rebounds in the win. Walter has now reached double figures in back-to-back games and has scored a combined 24 points in the two games vs. Milwaukee.
 
Overall, UND's bench outscored the Panthers, 32-23, marking the eighth time in 10 contests that the Hawks have outscored their opponents' reserves.
 
Conner Avants rebounded from a slow first half to collect his fourth double-double of his career with 12 points and 11 rebounds. The senior helped spark a 13-3 run in the second half that pushed the hosts in front for good, and became the third-different player to have a double-double this season for UND.
 
Milwaukee's (2-8) Darius Roy led all players with a game-high 20 points, but the Panthers were held to just 24-of-67 (.358) from the field in the loss. The Fighting Hawks recorded their best shooting performance since a Nov. 20 win over Concordia (Neb.), hitting at a .540 clip.
 
UND also won the rebounding battle, 42-32, for the sixth time, improving to 5-1 this season when claiming the battle on the boards. The 42 total rebounds are the most in a game since Nov. 20 vs. Concordia (Neb.). Besides the 11 boards from Avants, Filip Rebraca collected nine rebounds and scored eight points to just miss his second double-double of the 2018-19 campaign.
 
With Milwaukee leading 7-3 just four minutes into the contest, Moody drilled his first three of the game followed by a Rebraca layup to boost the Hawks in front, 8-7, at the opening media timeout. That lead change was the first of ultimately 13 in the tilt, as the two teams went back-and-forth for most of the contest.
 
Both sides went punch-for-punch as the half wore on, but the Panthers stretched their lead to five, 34-29, on a Jake Wright triple with 2:01 to play in the first stanza. The five-point advantage, the largest of the game for the visitors, was short lived as Moody answered with a three of his own and Seales followed with a jumper in the paint to level the score at 34.
 
Free throws were the story over the final two minutes as each team hit shots from the charity stripe, with Milwaukee sinking a pair in the final seconds to take a 40-38 into the halftime break.
 
After Milwaukee took another five-point lead just over a minute into the second half, UND exploded on a 13-3 run by connecting on six of its next eight shots to turn the 45-40 deficit into a 53-48 advantage with 13:38 to play in regulation. Walter put an exclamation point on the spurt for the Hawks with a tough, old fashioned 3-point play in the paint to give the hosts a 49-48 lead and send the 1,547 fans to their feet.
 
Walter continued his strong minutes in the second frame by drilling a corner three, with a little help from the glass, and sinking a pair form the charity stripe to put UND up, 58-52, with just over 11 minutes to play.
 
UND used the foul line to spark another run with less than five minutes remaining to score seven straight points, extending the advantage to 12, 70-58.
 
The Panthers chipped the deficit down to nine on a pair of occasions, but got no closer as the Hawks rallied for a 83-72 victory on their home floor.
 
North Dakota remains home for the final time in nonconference play; hosting Mayville State on Friday at 7 p.m. Fans can watch the contest with the Comets on Fox Sports North.
 
NOTES: The victory was the first time this season UND has won when trailing at the half (0-3 previously this season) … Conner Avants has four-career double-doubles … UND moves to 28-4 over the last three years when scoring 80-or-more points (4-0 this season) … Sunday marks the fourth time this season UND saw four players reach double figures (3-1 record) … UND moves to 4-1 all-time vs. Milwaukee.