North Dakota vs South Dakota State || 2/1 (1 p.m.)
203rd meeting, UND leads 105-97
Grand Forks, N.D. (Betty Engelstad Sioux Center)

FULL GAME NOTES ARE HERE

GRAND FORKS, N.D. - North Dakota men's basketball begins its second trip through the Summit League schedule on Saturday as the Hawks play host to South Dakota State. Tip-off from inside the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center is set for 1 p.m. Fans can follow the action live with UND men's basketball radio play-by-play voice Paul Ralston on KSNR 100.3 FM The Cat or on the iHeart Radio app, while the action can be seen on Midco Sports and the Summit League Network. Live stats will be provided at www.FightingHawks.com.

THE SERIES
SDSU got the best of the Hawks in the first meeting of the season: a 109-73 Jackrabbit victory on January 16 in Brookings. Saturday's matchup will be the 203rd meeting all-time between the two teams in a series that began in 1917. UND leads the all-time series 105-97 and holds a 62-30 mark against the Jackrabbits in Grand Forks. Since 2018-19, UND's first year in the Summit League, the Jackrabbits have had their way with North Dakota winning all 14 matchups including five inside the BESC. SDSU has won 18 straight games against the Hawks and six straight in Grand Forks. The Hawks' last victory against the Jackrabbits was a 19-point result on December 15, 2011 at home. 

MOST RECENTLY VS. SDSU
North Dakota matched the host's tempo in the early going of the January 16 matchup in Brookings battling the Jackrabbits through the first dozen minutes of action of a first half that saw five tied scores and as many lead changes. However, a hot-shooting night by SDSU and a 10-0 run over a 90-second span gave the Jackrabbits a nine-point advantage as the opening-half clock dipped under the nine-minute mark. South Dakota State then used an 11-4 run to carry a 15-point lead and the momentum into the break. It was much of the same for SDSU in the second half as the Jackrabbits shot nearly 57% from the floor, while UND suffered a 1-for-22 shooting stretch midway through the period.

TIPPING OFF
Saturday's action features the league's top two teams in rebounding average. SDSU leads the Summit with 39.96 rebounds per game which ranks 23rd nationally, while UND follows with 38.91 rebounds per game; a top 45 mark nationally. 

The Hawks lead the Summit with the tenth best offensive rebounding average in the country at 14.57, while SDSU ranks fourth in the Summit at 11.13. On the defensive end, the Jackrabbits rank eighth nationally at an average of 28.83 per game, while UND's 24.35 defensive boards per rank fourth in the Summit. SDSU holds a league-high rebound margin of 8.3.

SDSU boasts the league's top shooting percentage at 47.8% which lands the Jackrabbits inside the nation's top 50. UND is 5.5 percentage points back of that mark at a 42.3% success rate from the floor. SDSU's Oscar Cluff has recorded the second most double doubles nationally with 15. His 66.8% shooting clip ranks fourth nationally. UND's Treysen Eaglestaff's 419 points rank inside the top 20 nationally and lead the Summit.

PEAK CHASIN'
In early October, North Dakota was tabbed to a sixth-place finish in the Summit League preseason poll. The Hawks were one of six teams to receive a first-place vote and totaled 283 points in a wide open Summit League rankings. North Dakota was just 22 points back of projected No. 5 Oral Roberts which received two first-place nods. St. Thomas edged the Golden Eagles for fourth, while Kansas City (17), South Dakota State (12) and North Dakota State (3) went 1-2-3. The squad's sixth-place appointment, the second highest for UND under Sather, in the preseason rankings is one spot back of last season's fifth-place selection and matches the Hawks' placement prior to the start of the 2020-21 season.

The nine-member mid major league produced a collective non-conference record of 69-64. Four Summit League teams, including North Dakota, enter league play on winning streaks with North Dakota State's eight-game streak pushing the Bison to a league-best 11-4 start. Kansas City has won four-straight, while Omaha joins UND as winners of their past two.

LAST TIME OUT
at North Dakota State; L, 82-87
Junior guard Treysen Eaglestaff scored 15 of his 22 points in the second half, North Dakota used a 15-4 run to nearly erase a 12-point deficit in the second half, but the Bison hoisted 48 three-point attempts netting a third, while four NDSU players finished in double-figure scoring. UND hit season highs in free throw attempts (35) and fouls committed (23) and produced a season-low effort in protecting the basketball (6 TOs).

SECOND HALF BOUNCE BACK
The Hawks eye an improved effort in the second half of Summit League play as they entering Saturday's matchup with SDSU in a three-way tie for sixth place with Kansas City and Denver; both of whom the Hawks defeated. 

Through the first eight games of league play, UND is -5.4 in scoring margin, while opponents are shooting nearly ten percentage points better than the Hawks from the floor. 

IN THE SUMMIT WINS
In wins over Denver and Kansas City, the Hawks averaged a +4.5 turnover margin and a +4.0 rebounding margin. UND shot an average of six percentage points better than the two foes.

IN THE LEAGUE LOSSES
The Hawks hold a scoring margin of -12.0 in the six Summit League defeats, while opponents are making nearly three more three-point attempts per game and shooting 14% better from the floor. UND carries a positive turnover margin of +1.2 in those contests.

MIER-IAD OF POINTS
Sophomore Mier Panoam's first season in Grand Forks can be labeled with multiple descriptors. One of which is impactful. The Tulane transfer enters the final stretch of Summit League play with the tenth best scoring average overall (13.8) and the fourth highest scoring average (19.0) against league opponents. Panoam has scored in double figures 17 times this season with six twenty-point games and a career-high 28 in UND's road win at Denver. 

HANDLE WITH CARE
The Hawks are +2 in turnover margin in Summit League play which is currently the third-best such mark in the conference and only the fourth above even. UND has turned the basketball over less than nine times in five of its eight league contests and has committed nine or fewer turnovers in seven of their past ten games. UND's 1.43 assist-to-turnover ratio in eight SL contests is the third-best clip in the league. 

NOW BOARDING
The offensive glass has been controlled by UND in 19 of the squad's 23 games and the Hawks have been out-rebounded on the offensive glass twice. 

UND has grabbed 12+ offensive rebounds in 21 of 23 games. Nine Hawks have recorded 10+ offensive boards this season led by Amar Kuljuhovic's 72. Mier Panoam follows with 46 and Brian Mathews has added 41.

North Dakota ranks 10th nationally in offensive rebounds per game at 14.57; a mark that leads the Summit League. The squad's overall rebounding average of 38.91 ranks second in the league and is in the top 45 nationally. Overall, the Hawks have out-rebounded their opposition 15 times this season. 

THE BIG O
Following his historic effort against #6 Alabama and a home win over South Dakota Mines, junior guard Treysen Eaglestaff was recognized on the national stage as he was one of five players named an Oscar Robertson National Player of the Week for games of the week ending Sunday, Dec. 22. Eaglestaff was joined by Donovan Dent (New Mexico), Caden Pierce (Princeton), Erik Reynolds (Saint Joseph's) and Bruce Thornton (Ohio State). He is the first Hawk to receive the honor since the award's inception began during the 2009-10 season.

PO1NTS, PO1NTS, PO1NTS
Eaglestaff's 40 points against Alabama, the 20th such game by a Fighting Hawk all-time, vaulted the junior guard into the 1,000-point club at UND. He became the 39th player in program history to reach the mark and the 12th to do it in UND's Division I era (2008-09). Currently, Eaglestaff is No. 28 on the scoring list with 1,156 points and he is 21 points shy of moving into the program's top 15 and 44 points shy of becoming the 21st player in program history to reach 1,200.

A SCORING STORY
Eaglestaff has developed into one of the league's top scorers as he ranks third among Summit League players with 18.2 points per game, while his 419 total points are a top 20 total nationally. He ranks third in the Summit League in field goals (140) and first in field goal attempts (343), which ranks 15th nationally.

TR3Y-POINT LAND
Eaglestaff eyes a move up the program record books as he is currently fifth in career three-pointers with 192 which makes him the program's leader in made three pointers among players that played their entire career in UND's D1 era. The Bismarck native is eight made threes away from becoming the fourth player in program history with 200 career made three-pointers. Additionally, Eaglestaff moved into third all-time on the Hawks' D1 three-point attempt list and he is currently fourth on the all-time list. 

This season, he ranks fourth in the Summit League in made three-pointers (55) and three-pointers per game (2.39) and leads the league in attempts from range (166). 

KRAFTHREE
Redshirt freshman Zach Kraft has placed himself firmly in UND's rotation after totaling just 48 minutes with two three-point makes in six attempts. Since jumping onto the scene with a memorable performance against Alabama (9 pts), Kraft has seen action in each of UND's past 11 games and during that time he is shooting 44% from deep (22-of-50) and 48.2% overall from the floor, while averaging 15.2 minutes per. 

1KULJUHOVIC
Senior forward Amar Kuljuhovic reached a personal milestone at Utah Valley. The Waterloo, Iowa product crossed over 1,000 career points in his collegiate career with a 13-point night against the Wolverines. He recorded 624 points in two seasons at Lake Land College and currently has 512 points in 54 games as a Fighting Hawk. 

The scoring milestone isn't the only one in reach for Kuljuhovic as he is 65 rebounds shy of 1,000 for his career. He registered 511 at LLC and currently has 424 as a Fighting Hawk with 152 coming on the offensive end of the floor. 

DARIYUS FROM DEEP
First-year Fighting Hawk, Dariyus Woodson, a TJC transfer and Baytown, Texas native, holds a top 25 scoring mark in the Summit League with 10.5 ppg. He ranks sixth with 129 attempts from three-point range and 12th with 41 makes from three.  

HELPING HANDS
Two Hawks have recorded 50+ assists this season and one more is closing in. Mier Panoam leads UND with 57 assists, Treysen Eaglestaff follows with 51 and Eli King trails with 49. 

MORE MAYAR
Deng Mayar registered back-to-back double double efforts in a weekend home-and-home with UTSA. In two games against the Roadrunners, Mayar averaged 27.1 minutes and shot 53.3% (8-of-15) from the floor with a 50% (3-of-6) rate from three-point range. He went 5-of-7 from the line to average 12.0 points over the pair of contests. Mayar led UND in rebounding with 10.5 boards per game, including the second-most offensive rebounds at eight. 

ROAD HAWKS
Eight of North Dakota's 15 non-conference games were outside the state. UND's meeting with Eastern Washington bookended a five-game stretch away from Grand Forks with three of the five standing as true road contests. The Hawks' west coast tip-off against Loyola Marymount marked the first time in program history that UND men's basketball contested in each of the four time zones of the continental United States prior to December.

Including UND's in-state neutral site affair against Dickinson State in Bismarck, the Hawks flocked nearly 11,000 miles during the first five weeks of the season. The Hawks' first-semester travel totaled over 16,200 miles during its non-conference slate.

BUSY STRETCH
The Hawks endured a busy ten-day stretch prior to the Christmas holiday. North Dakota started with UVU in Orem (L, 57-80) and capped the stretch on Friday, December 20 against South Dakota Mines (W, 80-48) in Grand Forks. In between, the Hawks traveled to Texas-San Antonio (Dec. 13; L, 76-80), hosted Texas-San Antonio (Dec. 15; L, 85-95) and battled #6/7 Alabama to the very end (Dec. 18; L, 90-97) inside the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center. 

STREAKING FROM RANGE
The Hawks have connected on 192 of its 615 attempts from three-point range this season. UND's streak of three or more made three-point attempts in a game stands at 133. Under Sather, the Hawks have made three or more three-point attempts in 175 of the 178 games that he has led UND in. Overall, North Dakota has made a three-point shot in 212 consecutive games.

BIG SKY-SUMMIT CHALLENGE
The Hawks earned the program's first win in the Big Sky-Summit Challenge with Saturday's victory vs. Weber State. UND improved to 1-3 in two seasons of the challenge which has been competitive for the Hawks as the four games have been decided by less than six points per game. 

A year ago, North Dakota dropped a home contest with Northern Colorado (L, 87-97) and a road tilt at Northern Arizona (L, 73-74) in last season's inaugural matchups. The Summit League won the challenge by 102 points.

UND was no stranger to the Big Sky having spent six seasons in the league from 2012-13 through 2017-18. The Hawks won 58 league games as a conference member which included the regular season title at 14-4 in 2016-17. That same season, the Hawks won the conference tournament title and received the Big Sky's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.

POSTER CHILD
Sophomore forward Mambourou Mara's baseline slam against Dickinson State garnered national attention as the play ranked #2 on Tuesday night, November 12's SportsCenter Top 10. Mara took flight after receiving a helper from Reggie Thomas along the baseline and finished with a rim rocker.

HAWK DEBUTS
Three Fighting Hawks hit the floor for the first time in the kelly green and white during the Capital City Classic in Bismarck. Redshirt freshman and Bismarck native Anthony Doppler played a dozen-plus minutes and finished with two rebounds and a steal in his collegiate debut. Classmate Matthew Bothun played over 6:30 minutes scoring his first career basket, while freshman George Natsvishvili saw 16 minutes of court time to finish with two points, two rebounds, two assists and a block.

Sophomore Mier Panoam and juniors Reggie Thomas and Dariyus Woodson competed for the first time in kelly green and white in the season opener at Colorado State. Panoam scored ten points in 24 minutes and added five rebounds, two assists, two steals and a block. Woodson operated in a team-high 29 minutes scoring seven points with five rebounds. Thomas played two dozen minutes adding
two rebounds, an assist and one block to six points.

Redshirt freshmen Zach Kraft and Ryan Erikson made their Fighting Hawks debuts against Colorado State. The North Dakota natives, Kraft calls Grand Forks home and Erikson hails from Bismarck, both took the floor against the Rams logging the first minutes of their collegiate careers. Kraft checked in with 5:42 remaining in the game, while Erikson entered at the 1:46 mark.

BALLIN' BACK HOME
In addition to Eaglestaff's effort against Dickinson State inside an arena that has seen him take the floor an estimated 17 times throughout his prep career, another Bismarck native felt right at home back home in UND's win in the Capital City Classic. Second-year Hawk Ryan Erikson made the most of a dozen minutes of work connecting on 4-of-9 shooting for eight points, of which included his first career points, to go along with four rebounds, an assist and one steal.

ONE LAST LOOK BACK
UND enters the 2024-25 season on the heels of an 18-win campaign a year ago that included a 10-6 record in league play to finish tied for second in the regular season standings. UND lost to Omaha in the final seconds in the quarterfinal round of the Summit League Tournament. The 18 wins, a Summit League best for UND, were the most in a single season for the program under Sather, the third time the Hawks reached a dozen or more in a season in his tenure and were the most by the Hawks since 2016-17.

Last season, the Hawks led the Summit League in steals per game (6.3) and ranked second in multiple categories including assist/turnover ratio (1.15), offensive rebounds per game (11.44), rebounds per game (36.59), scoring margin (+3.4) and three-point percentage defense (33.6). UND ranked third in the Summit League with a top 50 mark nationally in three-point attempts per game with 25.3. Additionally, the Hawks were disciplined ranking third in fouls per game at 15.2 which ranked 46th nationally among 351teams and took care of the basketball with a turnovers per game clip of 10.1 which
rated fourth in the Summit and 43rd in DI.

UND BY THE NUMBERS
35- The number of Summit League wins for the Hawks under head coach Paul Sather. The Hawks won a program-best 10 Summit League games a season ago and have won seven or more league games in a season three times under Sather.
19.0- The average number of points per game scored by Mier Panoam eight games into Summit League action. He delivered three-straight games of 20+ points to start conference play, five total since January 1 and has a pair of double doubles.
10- UND's national rank in offensive rebounds/game. The squad's mark of 14.57 leads the Summit League. UND has grabbed a dozen or more offensive rebounds in 21 of 23 games this season which is the most by a Sather-led UND team.
8- The number of three-point makes needed by junior guard Treysen Eaglestaff to reach 200 for his career. He would become the fourth player in program history with 200 or more makes from three-point range and the first exclusively Division I player in program history to do so.
7.0- The rebounding average for both Mier Panoam and Amar Kuljuhovic which ranks fourth in Summit League play. Kuljuhovic's 19 offensive rebounds are the second-most in eight such games. The pair has combined for 283 boards this season. 

A UND WIN WOULD
» Snap the Hawks' 18-game losing streak to SDSU
» Be the sixth for UND at home inside the Betty this season
» Be the 70th for head coach Paul Sather at UND
» Keep the Hawks nestled into the middle of the Summit League standings
» Be better than a loss