SIOUX FALLS, N.D. – The No. 3 North Dakota men's basketball team came up just short in the Summit League Tournament Championship, falling to No. 1 North Dakota State, 70-62 on Sunday night from the Denny Sanford Premier Center. UND concludes the season at 18-17 and North Dakota State improves to 27-7.

UND trailed 63-50 with 3:23 left and rallied with a 9-0 run in the next 1:49, to cut the NDSU lead to just four with 1:34 to play. The dagger came on the next Bison possession, as UND forced a miss, but was unable to grab the rebound. This resulted in a second chance for the Bison, allowing Noah Feddersen to hit a straight-away three with 51.6 seconds left, to make it a 66-59 game. The Hawks lost the second chance point battle, 12-3.

For the 10th straight game, North Dakota was led by Greyson Uelmen, who continued his heroic tournament, totaling 24 points on 7-of-11 shooting, with four assists and four rebounds. The redshirt freshman logged 93 points across three games this weekend, good 41 more points than the next highest player (Damari Wheeler-Thomas, 52 points). Uelmen shot the ball at an outrageous 70.7% clip from the field this tournament.

Zach Kraft stepped up for UND, recording 19 points on 5-of-9 from the field and 4-for-8 from deep. Eli King played all 40 minutes in the final game of his UND career, posting nine points, five rebounds, two assists and three blocks in the contest.

First Half
Like the Hawks have done in their previous two meetings with the Bison this season, they jumped out to an early lead over NDSU, claiming a 7-2 advantage early on, via four points from Uelmen and three from King.

The Bison punched back with a 13-2 run of their own, leading 15-9 at the 11:41 point. The squads remained close, with NDSU leading 21-14, when the Hawks bursted on an 11-2 run, capped off by an Uelmen three-point play, to take a 25-23 lead with 6:41 to play.

NDSU responded with a 7-0 run, to jump back in front, 30-25, but the Hawks kept their ground. Anthony Smith lll converted on a tough up-and-under layup, which was followed by a three-pointer from Reggie Thomas, evening the game at 30-30 with 2:27 to play.

The Hawks ended the half poorly, conceding an 8-0 run to NDSU, capped off by a Tay Smith three-pointer with eight seconds remaining, giving the Bison a 38-30 lead going into halftime. Uelmen led the way with 14 points on 5-of-5 shooting

Second Half
Scoring did not come at a premium for a good chunk of the second half, as UND struggled to capitalize on opportunities to cut into the lead.

While a Garrett Anderson layup with 16:06 to play cut the NDSU advantage to 41-36, the Hawks went scoreless for 3:16 of gametime, allowing the Bison to hop back in front, 46-36 with 13:05 left.

UND clawed for a good portion of the final 20 minutes, trailing 56-44 with 6:38 left, before Kraft was fouled on a three-point attempt on back-to-back possessions, where he hit 5-of-6 free throws, while stopping the clock. NoDak trailed 56-49 with 5:59 to play.

On the next NDSU possession, Wheeler-Thomas missed a three-pointer, grabbed his own rebound and relocated to the left corner, where he drilled the second chance three-ball and was fouled by Uelmen, shifting momentum right back to the Bison. He would miss the free throw, as NDSU held a 59-49 lead with 5:26 to play.

When UND trailed 63-50 with 3:23 to play, the Hawks 9-0 run was composed of a Kraft triple, four Uelmen free throws and a layup by Kraft, cutting it to a 63-59 ball game. Following the Feddersen second chance three-pointer, Anderson had a great look from the left corner to respond, but was unable to convert. NoDak would fall, 70-62.

Uelmen and King were named to the Summit League All-Tournament Team, as Wheeler-Thomas earned the tournament MVP. Below is the full Summit League All-Tournament Team.

2026 Summit League All-Tournament Team
Damari Wheeler-Thomas, NDSU (MVP)
Noah Feddersen, NDSU
Greyson Uelmen, North Dakota
Eli King, North Dakota
Nolan Minessale, St. Thomas

Postgame Notes

• UND drops to 165-149 all-time against the Bison
• The Hawks drop to 6-7 all-time in the Summit League Tournament
• At 18-17, UND secured its fifth over .500 record in the division l era
• The 18 wins tie for the most under Paul Sather
• Uelmen totaled 93 points in three tournament games on 70.7% from the field
• His 93 points were 41 points higher than Damari Wheeler-Thomas, who had the second most points with 52
• King had the third most points in the tournament with 46
• King concludes his career with 162 steals, good for sixth all-time
• Anderson tied a career-high in rebounds (9) and steals (4)
• UND shot it 20-of-55 from the field (36.4%) and 8-for-26 from deep (30.8%)
• NDSU was 25-of-56 from the field (44.6%) and 10-for-23 (43.5%) from three
• NDSU won the paint battle, 24-18
• The Bison got 22 bench points compared to eight from UND
• North Dakota State outrebounded UND, 41-33 (12-6 on the offensive glass)

How It Happened
First Half
15:55 UND 7, NDSU 7
11:13 NDSU 15, UND 9
7:56 NDSU 21, UND 19
3:53 NDSU 28, UND 25
Halftime: NDSU 38, UND 30
 
Second Half
15:57 NDSU 43, UND 36
10:45 NDSU 48, UND 38
6:38 NDSU 56, UND 44
3:57 NDSU 61, UND 50
Final: NDSU 70, UND 62

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