NDSU Men's Basketball: New-Look Bison Win Thriller Over MSUM 80-74 in Exhibition Match

Head coach Dave Richman welcomes back Jason Kemp and the MSUM Dragons to the Sanford Health Athletic Complex for their third annual exhibition match to start the 2026 men's basketball season.

Richman has embraced the transfer portal and the modern era of college basketball. NDSU has completely rebuilt its roster with only three players returning. Star point guard Andy Stefonowicz, reserve guard Riley Massey and reserve shooter Carson Smith.

They’ve welcomed key transfers from the Big10 conference, Juco levels and lower-division one schools to help fill out the roster:

• Jack Robison, 6’6 junior guard from Wisconsin
• Jaziah Harper, 6’7 sophomore guard from Maryland
• Melvin Bell Jr., 6’4 sophomore guard from San Jose State (started 24/33 games)
• Rob Diaz III, 6’1 senior guard from Long Beach State
• Karl Poom, 6’8 forward from Northern Arizona
• Andrew Nagy, 6’9 forward from Long Beach State
• Kaden Tate, 6’6 forward from Des Moines Community College

Another level of the roster is the deep recruiting class with players like:

• Max Iverson, 6’3 guard from Maple Grove
• Amir Danforth, 6’ guard from Rockford, Illinois

There were many question marks surrounding this team, especially with the transfers, but Richman assured the media: "I love this team." Especially when talking about the practices, closed-door scrimmages and how intense the team is, his enthusiasm was evident.

The school across the Red River had plans to spoil the first exhibition game of the season. Head coach Jason Kemp is in his second year at the helm and brings in a lengthy, experienced team.

MSUM threw the first punch with a three-pointer from Kayden Nation. After the first media timeout, MSUM led 11-9 after Lincoln Rodgers connected from the three-point range. MSUM was clicking on all cylinders from beyond the arc.

It was a back-and-forth affair in the first half with NDSU tied at 39 apiece with 1:39 left in the first, but Rob Diaz III ended the half on a 4-0 run by himself to give NDSU the five-point lead going into the second: 44-39.

Stefonowicz, when asked about Diaz III, gave high praise: “Rob gets buckets. He’s been like that since he’s been on campus. He’s a great competitor and a great teammate.”

MSUM didn't go away in the second half. They took a five-point lead with 12 minutes left by way of Kayden Nation hitting another three-pointer, 57-52.

San Jose State transfer Melvin Bell Jr. recorded his first double-double in the green and gold but also drilled two free throws to give back the lead for NDSU at 66-65 with 5:19 left in the second half.

NDSU was in the bonus for six minutes, which played into their aggressive game plan to get MSUM into foul trouble.

Another transfer, Kaden Tate, intercepted a pass and threw the hammer down to extend NDSU's lead to seven, 71-64, with 4:14 left to play.

Riley Massey put a bow on the game after he converted both free throws to make the game 80-74. This led to NDSU's win in the highly competitive exhibition match.

Rob Diaz III led the team with 23 points, Melvin Bell Jr. led the team with 10 rebounds, and the team only had six assists the entire game. When asked about the lack of assists, Stefonowicz said, “It’ll develop as we go; I thought we did a good job of taking care of the ball.” Kaden Tate also had an amazing debut, recording five blocks.

NDSU will return to action at 7 p.m. on Nov. 2 at the Sanford Health Athletic Complex to face the University of Minnesota Crookston in the home opener kicking off the 2026-2027 season. The game can be seen on WDAY Xtra and listened to on Bison 1660.