ST. PAUL, Minn. – Eli King's go-ahead layup with 6.9 seconds remaining proved to be the game-winner, as UND snapped the Tommies 28-game home winning streak, with an 81-80 victory over St. Thomas on Thursday night from Lee & Penny Anderson Arena. UND improves to 13-12 overall and 7-2 in conference play, while St. Thomas drops to 17-6 and 6-2 in Summit League play.

The Hawks did not lead the entire second half, up until King's go-ahead layup. UND trailed 80-79 with 10.5 seconds to play, with the Tommies inbounding the ball on their own baseline. Greyson Uelmen got the steal on Nick Janowksi, where King picked up the loose ball and made an acrobatic layup at the rim to give UND the lead.

Following the make, St. Thomas rushed the ball up the court with a chance for the win, but Janowski's shot came off the rim. UND picked up its fourth straight win overall and its fourth consecutive win on the road.

North Dakota had four players in double figures, led by Garrett Anderson, who totaled a team-high 20 points, connecting on 4-of-10 three-point attempts. It was Anderson's third 20-point performance this season.

Zach Kraft (14), King (14) and Uelmen (12) all scored 12 or more points, combining to shoot 14-for-28 from the field. It was the third straight game these four players scored in double digits.

NoDak shot 31-of-62 from the field, improving to 4-0 this season when shooting at least 50.0% from the field. The Fighting Hawks connected on 9-of-26 three-point attempts, while St. Thomas went 28-of-57 from the field and 7-for-20 from three.

UND led by as many as six in the first half, starting 3-of-3 from behind the arc to take an early 17-11 lead with 14:17 to play. Uelmen, Anderson and Kraft connected on those three pointers to help build the advantage.

The Tommies scored five straight points to make it a 17-16 ballgame, before King and Smith lll both hit two pointers, to push the lead back to 21-16 at the 10:22 mark. The two teams then exchanged 5-0 runs, as St. Thomas tied it at 21-21, then UND made it 26-21 with 7:58 to play.

St. Thomas then went on a 17-2 run over the next 5:36, to take a 38-28 lead with 2:22 left in the first half. The Hawks weathered the storm, going into the break, down 43-35.

The Fighting Hawks came out in the second half on a 13-5 run in the first 4:48 of the frame, courtesy of 10 points from Anderson, to tie the game at 48-48 with 15:12 to play. The two squads then scored five points each in the next 1:36 to even it up at 53-53.

From there, St. Thomas went on a 7-0 to run to take its largest lead for the rest of the game at 60-53. UND trailed for the rest of the second half, up until the King go-ahead layup by as many as seven and as little as one.

Fast forward in the game, St. Thomas led 74-69 with 4:20 to play, when Josh Jones missed a pair of free throws. St. Thomas had a chance to push the lead back to three possessions, but off a Nolan Minessale miss and Tommies offensive rebound, Kraft came away with a steal. Off the turnover, Kraft got the ball on the left side, drove to the basket and went up-and-under for the finish at the cup, to pull the score within 74-71 at the 3:49 mark.

After another Tommies empty offensive possession, Connor Bjerke was called for a Flagrant 1 foul on Jones. Jones redeemed himself, knocking down both free throws, to make it 74-73 with 3:22 to play.

Following two free throws from Minessale and a layup from Herro, St. Thomas regained the lead at 78-73 with 2:23 to play. In must need of a basket, UND was unable to get it, as King missed a three-pointer on the next offensive possession. The Tommies had another chance to make it a three-possesion game, but were unable to do so. UND got the defensive rebound and came up the court, where King was fouled. He made both free throws, to pull it to a 78-75 game with 1:36 left.  

Here was where things got crazy, as following a St. Thomas empty possession, Smith lll pushed the ball up the court, got by his defender and finished at the cup, making it 78-77. Reggie Thomas then came up with a steal on Herro and was fouled with 48 seconds left. It was a one-and-one opportunity for Thomas, where he missed the first free throw. St. Thomas came up with the rebound.

On their next offensive possession, the Tommies made UND pay, as Janowski hit a mid-range jumpshot from the free throw line to make it 80-77 with 22 seconds left. UND came up the court quick, where Uelmen found Jones for the layup with 10.5 seconds left, making it an 80-79 game.

The Fighting Hawks then got the steal on the St. Thomas inbound, leading to King's game-winning bucket. UND snapped a four-game losing streak against the Tommies, winning 81-80.
UND will be back in action next Thursday at home against Omaha at 7 p.m. Coverage can be found on Midco Sports.

Postgame Notes

• The Fighting Hawks improve to 11-12 all-time against UST, snapping a four-game losing streak against the Tommies
• North Dakota snapped the Tommies 28-game home winning streak, which was the longest in the country
• UND moves into second place in the Summit League, with a 7-2 record
• NoDak moves to 6-6 on the road this season, winning its last four away from the Betty
• Anderson scored 20 points, good for his third 20-point performance this season
• UND had 15 bench points compared to nine from UST
• Both teams had 42 points in the paint
• UST outrebounded UND 34-31
• NoDak had 11 points off turnovers, compared to 13 from the Tommies
• UND had 11 second chance points, while UST had eight
• The Fighting Hawks move to 5-3 this season in games separated by five points or less, winning their last four in that department
• NoDak is 7-4 this season when games are separated by less than 10 points
• The Hawks are now 11-3 when hitting at least eight three pointers
• UND is 4-0 when shooting 50.0% or better

How It Happened
First Half
15:51 UST 11, UND 10
11:13 UND 17, UST 15
7:45 UND 26, UST 23
3:20 UST 36, UND 28
Halftime: UST 43, UND 35
 
Second Half
13:52 UST 51, UND 50
11:56 UST 58, UND 53
7:14 UST 68, UND 64
3:22 UST 74, UND 71
Final: UND 81, UST 80

For more information on North Dakota men's basketball, visit FightingHawks.com or follow on social media @UNDmbasketball.
-- UND --