Next Game: vs. North Dakota State
The University of North Dakota men's basketball team returns home for a huge showdown with in-state rival and unbeaten North Dakota State on Friday night at 7:30 p.m. from the Betty. Fans can catch all the action on MidcoSN with Alex Heinert and Zachary Dosch on the mics or tune into Paul Ralston on the Home of Economy Radio Network. 

Series History vs. North Dakota State
This will be the 302nd all-time meeting between North Dakota and North Dakota State, with UND owning a 162-139 lead in the series. While UND owns the overall series, NDSU holds an 11-5 advantage in the Division I chapter of the rivalry. North Dakota has owned North Dakota State in Grand Forks; however, winning 97 of the 143 contests played at either the Hyslop Sports Center, Ralph Engelstad Arena or the Betty.

300!
The Dec. 12th meeting between North Dakota and North Dakota State was the 301st time the two in-state foes have met, the rivalry is only the sixth active Division I rivalry to cross the 300-game plateau. The duo sit behind only Oregon vs. Oregon State, Oregon vs. Washington and Oregon State vs. Washington as the longest active rivalries in DI men's basketball. 

Home Cookin'
Despite that home dominance, UND will looking for only its seventh home win in 13 games vs. the Bison since the 2000 season, splitting those previous 12 contests. A win on Friday would give the Hawks back-to-back wins over NDSU at home for the first time since a 59-54 win on Jan. 17, 2012 at the REA and a 95-77 thromping on Nov. 24, 2013 in front of record crowd at the Betty. 

No Easy Roads
UND has gone through a grinder of a schedule so far this season, as the Fighting Hawks are tied with Arizona State for the 124th most-difficult schedule in the nation. UND's previous opponents are a combined 73-53 (.579) which sits second in the Summit League behind only Omaha (.607). 

It's A 50/50 Shot Really
Since the rivalry returned in 2010, nearly every game of the series has followed one of two paths... blowout or final shot. In the 16 meetings, seven of them have been considered blowout victories (wins by 15 points or more) by one of the two sides, and six of them have seen a team with a chance to tie or take the lead in the final 60 seconds of the game. The other three tilts were each decided by nine points and have all come in the last three seasons. 

FULL GAME NOTES CAN BE FOUND HERE