Next Game: vs. North Dakota State
The University of North Dakota men’s basketball team will travel to Fargo to battle North Dakota State inside the SCHEELS Center at 7 p.m. on Wednesday night. Fans can catch all the action on s by tuning into Paul Ralston‘s call on AM 790|FM 104.7 KFGO
Series History vs. NDSU
This will be the 304th all-time meeting between North Dakota and North Dakota State. UND owns a 163-140 lead in the series, while NDSU holds a 12-6 advantage in the Division I chapter of the rivalry. The Bison also hold an 86-60 record in the series in Fargo.
Last season, NDSU held a 2-1 edge over UND in the series, picking up a 53-52 win at the Sanford Pentagon in December and also a 62-45 victory at the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center on Jan. 15. The following day, North Dakota bounced back with an 82-78 overtime win in Grand Forks.
300!
The Jan. 16, 2021, meeting between North Dakota and North Dakota State was the 303rd time the two in-state foes have met, the rivalry is only the sixth active Division I rivalry to cross the 300-game plateau. The duo sits behind only Oregon vs. Oregon State, Oregon vs. Washington and Oregon State vs. Washington as the longest active rivalries in Division I men’s basketball.
Last Time Out
North Dakota trailed Dixie State by 16 points late in the second half and trimmed the deficit down to five with just over three minutes to go, but saw its comeback attempt fall short in the 78-69 decision inside the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center on Saturday afternoon. DSU did most of its damage in the paint, outscoring UND by a 44-26 margin down low.
Paul Bruns led the kelly green and white with a season-high 21 points and six rebounds for his ninth double digit scoring performance of the season. Ethan Igbanugo was next in scoring for UND, tying his career-best scoring output of 18 points, while connecting on five triples to go with four rebounds and three assists. Tsotne Tsartsidze was the last player over double digits and just missed out on a double-double with 13 points and nine blocks, while also rejecting a career-high four scoring attempts.
Most Recently for NDSU
North Dakota State led for just under 35 minutes of the game and connected on 11 three-pointers against Pacific to come away with a 73-61 victory inside the Alex G. Spanos Center in Stockton, Calif., on Friday night. The Bison were up 49-43 with 10 minutes left before posting a 7-0 run to put the game away.
Rocky Kreuser was the top performer for NDSU with 24 points and 10 rebounds for a double-double. Tyree Eady added 14 points and dished out a team-high four assists, while Jarius Cook also netted double figures with 10 points.
I-29 Bound
UND will be traveling plenty up and down Interstate 29 in the coming years as members of The Summit League and the men’s basketball program will look to continue its success over the rivals located along that stretch. UND owns winning records against four of the other five The Summit League teams that are located on I-29: North Dakota State, Omaha, South Dakota and South Dakota State, but is 2-5 against Kansas City.
Since joining the league in 2018-19, however, I-29 was a tough place to find wins for UND, as the Fighting Hawks are 8-24 against Division I opponents along the stretch. On the other hand, the Hawks are 16-7 against conference foes not positioned on I-29.
UND finally snapped its losing streak at 14 against I-29 league foes with a 71-68 win vs. North Dakota State. The win was the first over a DI school along the stretch since a road win over NDSU on Jan. 16, 2018. Just a few weeks later, UND snapped an eight-game losing streak against South Dakota with a 74-71 win in the quarterfinal round of the Summit League Tournament.
Last Win Over I-29 Schools
Kansas City – Jan. 2, 2021 (L1)
North Dakota State – Jan. 16, 2021 (W1)
Omaha – Feb. 20, 2021 (W1)
South Dakota – Feb. 14, 2021 (W4)
South Dakota State – Dec. 15, 2011 (L11)
Ballin’ with Bentiu
Bentiu Panoam currently leads the team with 25 consecutive starts and has dished out a team-high 30 assists. Panoam has been filling the position of point guard most recently after Caleb Nero went down with an injury against San Jose State on Dec. 3. Panoam has a season-best 20 points vs. UT-Martin at the Paradise Classic earlier this season and corralled a career-high six boards vs. Eastern Washington.
Early last season, Panoam provided a spark off the bench for the Fighting Hawks and worked his way into a starting role, earning his place in the starting lineup for the final 13 games of the season. He decided to exercise his COVD-19 extra year of eligibility and is playing for the Fighting Hawks once again in 2021-22.
In 2020-21, the Anchorage, Alaska, native netted double-figure performances in five of his last six starts, recording back-to-back 20+ point games in that stretch. Panoarm recorded a new career-high with 25 points against South Dakota and set a new career-high in made triples with five at Omaha.
Fearless Freshman
Freshman Paul Bruns has played a key role for UND this season, and now has six collegiate starts this season. He currently leads all freshmen in the Summit League, averaging 12.5 points per game and 14.8 points per game while starting. Bruns has knocked down at least one three-pointer in the last eight games.
Most recently, Bruns poured in a new season-high 21 points and pulled down six rebounds in a 78-69 loss to Dixie State inside the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center on Saturday for his ninth double digit scoring performance of the season. The Jefferson, S.D., native has a team leading 26 made trifectas and averages 1.5 steals per game to lead the team. His 12.5 points per game is also a team high.
Defensive Danielson
Brady Danielson has played in more games than any other player on the active roster, playing in 70 games and starting six of them. Of the six starts, three of them have come in the last three games.
Danielson is best known for his defense and has already drawn seven offensive fouls this season to lead the team. Most recently, he led the team with three charges drawn against Dixie State on Saturday.
Last season, Danielson appeared in 25 games off the bench and averaged 13.0 minutes per game while putting in just under two points per game and just over one rebound per game. He dished out a career-high four assists at Minnesota last season.
In his career, Danielson erupted for 18 points at Oregon State, while making a career-best six field goals.
Let’s Go Igbanugo
Ethan Igbanugo has always been known as a sharpshooter and that has continued this season, with him currently tied for second on the team with Matt Norman for made triples this season, knocking down 19 trifectas on 51 attempts. His shooting percentage from beyond the arc is currently 37.3 percent. His five made triples against Dixie State is a new career best.
The Lakeville North Product appeared in every game last season with 16 starts, averaging 27 minutes per game. He was a cool customer from downtown, leading the team in made triples with 40 and hitting a three in every game except one.
Igbanugo poured in a career-high 18 points against North Dakota State late last season, while averaging 8.3 points per game. The Lakeville, Minn., native also went a perfect 6-for-6 from the charity stripe against Purdue Fort Wayne during the 2019-20 season.
Finding A Groove
Sophomore transfer Tsotne Tsartsidze is coming into his own at post and had a highlight reel performance against Dixie State, rejecting a career-best four shots and just missing out on a double-double with 13 points and nine rebounds.
This season, the Tbilisi, Georgia, native has earned a start in every game except one and has had at least one block in seven contests. His 13 points on Saturday was tied his career-high, and he has had double digit scoring performances in four games this season.
Heat Check
North Dakota proved the three-point threat exists on Dec. 14 against North Central University, breaking the school record for made triples in a game with 17. The previous UND record for made shots beyond the arc in a single game was 16, which was tied three times, most recently on Dec. 17, 2019, in a 109-50 victory over Northland College inside the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center.
The Fighting Hawks are familiar with shots from deep and that has not changed this season, with the kelly green and white firing off 345 shots from beyond the arc and knocking down 114 of them for an average of 33.0 percent made from three-point land. In the record-breaking game vs. NCU, the Hawks finished 17-of-31 from deep for an average of 54.8 percent.
North Dakota has hit at least one triple in every game dating back to March 1, 2018. The last time the Hawks did not make a three came on Feb. 24, 2018, when UND went 0-for-8 from downtown at Northern Colorado in a 79-66 loss. North Dakota has hit at least one three in each of the last 105 games played.
Keeping Things Even
North Dakota had five returners in 2021-22 and eight newcomers and so far, they are keeping things close as a team. The Fighting Hawks have scored 895 points this season with the newbies pouring in 491 of them and the returners amassing 404 points. In total, the newcomers have scored 54.86 percent of UND’s total points this season, while the returners have accounted for 45.14 percent of North Dakota’s made shots.
Shaking Things Up
North Dakota has utilized six different variations of its starting lineup so far this season and may try its seventh different starting lineup on Tuesday. On the team, Bentiu Panoam has the most active consecutive starts currently with 25, followed by Paul Bruns with six. The next most common starters are Brady Danielson with three, trailed by Ethan Igbanugo and Tsotne Tsartsidze with two each.
Nero the Hero
North Dakota has been without its starting point guard the last four games after going down with an injury on Dec. 3, against San Jose State. Despite not playing the last three games, Nero is second on the team in points per game (12.1) and leads the team in both assists per game (2.8) and with a free throw percentage of 85.2.
Nero appeared in all 26 games last season and started 13 of them. The Tulsa, Okla., native proved to be a leader off the bench last season, leading all players off the bench with 8.7 points per game and 22.9 minutes per contest. He also led all guards on the team with a shooting percentage of 41.8 percent from the field and was second on the team in crunch time with an 83.3 percentage from the charity stripe.
In his career, Nero has piled up 25 games where he has netted double digits in points and has 17 games where has dished out three assists or more. In the season finale last season, Nero poured in 11 points in 21 minutes while grabbing three rebounds against Oral Roberts in the Summit League Quarterfinals.
Sueker Sinks Them
Mitchell Sueker has continued his hot streak from the end of last year and has six double digit scoring performances this year, averaging 11.9 per game. Even with missing the last two games with an injury, Sueker is second on the team in total points scored this season with 131.
Sueker leads the team with 28 makes at the charity stripe this season and is second in free throw percentage, hitting at 77.8 percent. Last season, Sueker drained 56-of-67 at the charity stripe to lead the team with an 83.6 percent at the free throw line. In his career, the Marshall, Minn., native is 200-258 at the stripe, good for a free throw percentage of 77.5 percent.
Sueker averaged 7.7 points and 4.0 rebounds per game last year and has career-highs in points (32), rebounds (12) and assists (5). His best free throw performance came against Kansas City last year when he went 11-for-12 at the line in the 52-45 win.
Record Rewind
The North Dakota men’s basketball program holds a 1,614-1,117 all-time record since Dr. George Sweetland led the first team onto the court in 1904-05. UND is 971-301 all-time when it comes to defending its home court. The 2021-22 season is the 14th at the Division I level for the program (2008-09) and the Fighting Hawks are 194-229 in those contests.
UND is 0-11 since 2000 against ranked Division I opponents, with the 2019 matchup at No. 8/7 Gonzaga being the highest-ranked regular season opponent since the No. 3 ranking held by Kansas when the Jayhawks visited Grand Forks in 2001.
Men’s Basketball 12/21/2021 2:12:00 PM Tyler Wells, FightingHawks.com
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