Next Game: vs. Omaha
The University of North Dakota will conclude its three-game homestand on Saturday with Omaha. The Fighting Hawks and Mavericks will tip-off at 1 p.m. (CT). Fans can follow all the action on Midco Sports 2 and ESPN+, as well as by tuning into Paul Ralston's call on the Home of Economy Radio Network (1440 AM/790 AM).

Series History vs. UNO
This will be the 99th all-time meeting between North Dakota and Omaha. UND has a 55-43 lead in the series and owns a 32-10 record in games played at Grand Forks. Since the two became conference rivals again in 2018-19, the Mavericks hold a 7-1 advantage, with two of those games seeing the lead change in the final 30 seconds of the contest.

In the most recent match-up on Jan. 6, the Fighting Hawks fell 98-82 to the Mavs inside Baxter Arena. Despite North Dakota winning the rebounding battle by a 40-37 margin and outscoring Omaha 42-40 in the paint, Omaha came away with the victory while only turning the ball over five times compared to UND's 11 turnovers.

Matt Norman was the leading scorer for NoDak with 20 points, two assists and a steal. Tsotne Tsartsidze netted 13 points to go with four rebounds, followed by Ethan Igbanugo and Brady Danielson finishing with 11 and 10 points, respectively.

Six Mavericks finished in double-digits and were led by Grant Fickenstein pouring in 16 points.

Last Time Out
In a game where North Dakota led by as many as 19 points in the second half, Denver closed regulation on an 18-4 run to force overtime at 70-70 and come away with the 81-79 victory inside the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center on Thursday night. The Fighting Hawks drained 15 triples, while the Pioneers won the statistical categories of points in the paint (42-44), rebounds (46-37), second chance points (14-8) and blocks (5-1).

Paul Bruns was the most aggressive Hawk offensively with a game-high 22 points, while hitting five triples to go with five boards and a steal. Brady Danielson was the only other player for UND to finish in double figures with 11 points and five rebounds.

Most Recently for UNO
Omaha trimmed North Dakota State's lead to two after four consecutive points from Dylan Brougham with under a minute to play, but the Bison capitalized at the charity stripe in the final minute to earn the 71-64 win over the Mavericks inside the SCHEELS Center on Thursday night. North Dakota State held a 23-11 advantage in points off turnovers and won the rebounding battle by a 35-24 margin in the contest.

Felix Lemetti poured in a team-high 17 points and finished 3-of-4 from deep to lead UNO. Darrius Hughes added 12 points off the bench, while Brougham added 10 points. Frankie Fidler pulled down a team leading six boards. Lemetti paced the team with five assists, while Akol Arop recorded four steals to lead the team.

I-29 Bound
UND will be traveling plenty up and down Interstate 29 in the coming years as members of The Summit League and the men's basketball program will look to continue its success over the rivals located along that stretch. UND owns winning records against four of the other five The Summit League teams that are located on I-29: North Dakota State, Omaha, South Dakota and South Dakota State, but is 2-6 against Kansas City.

Since joining the league in 2018-19, however, I-29 was a tough place to find wins for UND, as the Fighting Hawks are 8-31 against Division I opponents along the stretch. On the other hand, the Hawks are 16-11 against conference foes not positioned on I-29. 

Last Win Over I-29 Schools
Kansas City - Jan. 2, 2021 (L2)
North Dakota State - Jan. 16, 2021 (L1)
Omaha - Feb. 20, 2021 (L1)
South Dakota - Feb. 14, 2021 (L2)
South Dakota State - Dec. 15, 2011 (L13)

Attacking the Glass
As a team, North Dakota ranks fifth in the conference in rebounds per game (36.3) and is fourth in total rebounds (863) this season. When it comes to being aggressive on the offensive glass, NoDak shines with 263 boards to sit second in league play. The only team in the Summit League with more offensive boards this season is Western Illinois with 275.

COMPLETE GAME NOTES CAN BE FOUND HERE.