SIOUX FALLS, SD - MARCH 10: The North Dakota State Bison celebrate at the horn their 89-53 win over North Dakota Fighting Hawks during the mens championship game at the 2020 Summit League Basketball Tournament in Sioux Falls, SD. (Photo by Dave Eggen/Inertia)
The North Dakota State University men’s basketball team had a taste March Madness, before the coronavirus cancelled NCAA events for the remainder of the spring and summer.
NDSU won their fifth Summit League down in Sioux Falls on Tuesday, March 10 against the University of North Dakota.
The main dish was suppose to be the NCAA Tournament. A 25-8 record, experience from their run to the NCAA Tournament in 2019 and 4 senior leaders had fans excited heading into Selection Sunday.
Destinations for the Bison to travel includedL Tampa, St. Louis or Omaha. It didn’t matter, the questions started to arise, whether or not NDSU could dance into the Round of 32 for the second time in school history.
Unfortunately, that question will never be answered, so here’s a look back at the four previous NCAA Tournament appearances for NDSU with the most recent in 2019.
After finishing the regular season 15-15, NDSU won 3 straight games to win the Summit League Tournament, earning a First Four game against North Carolina Central in Dayton, Ohio.
The Bison won 78-74, behind the 23 points and 6 rebounds from Tyson Ward. Their reward was a trip to Columbia, South Carolina and a matchup against No. 1 seed Duke in the second round.
Zion Williamson and the Blue Devils upended the cinderella run of NDSU 85-62. Vinnie Shahid finished with 20 points and went 3-7 from beyond the arc.
The 2014-15 season, saw NDSU beat South Dakota State in the Summit League championship 57-56 and then play against No. 2 seed Gonzaga in Seattle, Washington. Dexter Werner put on a show, scoring 22 points on 10-14 shooting from the floor. Lawrence Alexander had 19 points and four three-pointers in his final game for NDSU.
You could argue, the second NCAA Tournament appearance in 2014 was the biggest sporting event in school history. A regular season win against Notre Dame and the No. 12 seed treated Saul Phillips and the Bison right. NDSU would upset Oklahoma for their first Division I NCAA Tournament win in school history.
Alexander hit a three-pointer to force overtime and the word “buckets” has never been the same. Alexander had 28 points on 10-15 shooting from the field.
The dance ended two days later against San Diego State 63-44. Xavier Thomas scored 30 points for the Aztecs.
The first appearance came in 2009, like a storybook fairytale. Transitioning from Division II to Division I, NDSU was unable to qualify for the NCAA Tournament for five seasons during the transition.
Ben Woodside, Brent Winkelman, Lucas Moormann and Mike Nelson propelled the Bison to a Summit League championship. A blue blood in the Kansas Jayhawks awaited to play NDSU from the Metrodome.
KU won 84-74, even though Woodside scored 37 points.
Comments