MACOMB, Ill. Courtesy of a 49-point second half, the North Dakota men's basketball team earned its second come-from-behind victory of the season, defeating Western Illinois 78-69 on Sunday evening from Western Hall. The Hawks improve to 3-5, while the Leathernecks fall to 1-6 on the season.
The Fighting Hawks trailed by as many as 13 in the first half and were down by six at halftime. UND shot 15-for-25 from the field, 5-for-8 from deep and 14-of-16 from the stripe in the second half, outscoring Western Illinois 49-34.
NoDak was led by the three-headed monster of
Garrett Anderson (21),
Eli King (18) and
Greyson Uelmen (16), combining for 58 of the teams 76 points in the win. They had 41 of UND's 49 points in the second half.
Anderson recorded 19 of his 21 in the second half, shooting 6-for-12 from the field and 3-for-6 from deep overall. King had a season-high 18 points on 6-for-14 shooting, grabbing five rebounds and snatching three steals as well. Uelmen had 16 points on 5-of-8 shooting, along with four assists.
UND started slow out of the gate, falling behind 18-5, but the Hawks used an 11-3 run, courtesy of eight points from
George Natsvlishvili on 4-of-4 shooting to pull within 21-16 at the 11:00 mark.
The Hawks allowed Western Illinois to go up double digits again, as the Leathernecks went on a 14-8 run to claim a 35-24 lead. North Dakota closed out the half on a 5-0 run in the final 2:23 to go into the break trailing 35-29.
The Green and White blitzed WIU in the second half, opening it up on a 9-0 run, giving the Hawks a 14-0 extended run going back to the end of the first half. Uelmen (4), King (3) and Anderson (2) made up the nine quick points in the second frame, giving UND a 38-35 lead with 17:33 to play.
From there, UND did not look back, leading the rest of the game. The Leathernecks got the lead down to as little as one at 48-47 and trailed UND 55-53, but a Hawks 8-0 run put them up 63-53 with 6:22 to play.
Five unanswered points from WIU made it 63-58, but North Dakota closed the game by outscoring the Leathernecks 15-11. UND led by as many as 11, picking up its third win of the season by a 78-69 final.
North Dakota will get a few days to rest, before hitting the road for a Black Friday matchup in Manoa against Hawaii at 11 p.m. CT.
Postgame Notes
- North Dakota improves to 8-8 all-time against Western Illinois
- Anderson, King and Uelmen combined for 58 of the teams 76 points (76.3%) including 41-of-49 in the second half
- UND earned its second comeback win of the season
- It was the second time the Hawks have overcome a double-digit deficit
- North Dakota shot 15-of-25 from the field in the second half, including 5-for-8 from three and 14-for-16 from the stripe
- 19 of Anderson's 21 points came in the second half
- Natsvilshvili scored all eight of his points in the first half on 4-of-4 shooting
- UND shot 27-of-55 overall, 7-of-16 from deep and 17-of-20 from the line
- Western Illinois shot 24-for-53 from the field, 10-for-21 from deep and 11-for-21 from the line
- North Dakota won the points in the paint battle 40-28 and had 16 points off of 17 WIU turnovers
How It Happened
First Half
14:26 WIU 18, UND 5
11:38 WIU 20, UND 12
7:22 WIU 24, UND 18
3:22 WIU 32, UND 22
Half: WIU 35, UND 29
Second Half
15:27 UND 43, WIU 39
11:59 UND 48, WIU 47
7:47 UND 57, WIU 53
3:56 UND 65, WIU 58
Final: UND 78, WIU 69
For more information on North Dakota men's basketball, visit FightingHawks.com or follow on social media @UNDmbasketball.
-- UND --
