Bison lose to Northern Colorado 80-70 despite Grant Nelson’s efforts
After claiming their first victory of the 2022-23 season last Sunday over Crown 76-55, the Bison headed to Albuquerque, N.M. to participate in the Lobo Classic. For the first of three matchups at The Pit, North Dakota State took on the Northern Colorado Bears of the Big Sky Conference.
Despite a concerning ankle injury, the Bison were able to welcome back their 6’11” junior forward from Devils Lake, N.D., Grant Nelson. Nelson, who was out for the Bison’s victory on Sunday, had a career night as he dropped 31 points in his return to the floor. Despite his efforts, the Bison couldn’t overcome yet another first-half deficit.
For the majority of the first half, North Dakota State went toe-to-toe with the Bears, trailing by just one at 22-21 with 5:28 to go following a bucket by Andrew Morgan. However, ignited by an and-1 from Caleb Shaw before the timeout, the Bears would proceed to conduct an 18-6 run to finish the half.
Once again, the Bison shot a substandard 39% from the field in the opening frame, the fifth time in six games they’ve shot below 40% in the first half. Along with the below-average efficiency, North Dakota State made just one of their eight three-point attempts along with a 4-9 showing from the line. Leading the Bison was Nelson who scored 10 points to pace his squad while leading the Bears were Dalton Knecht, Caleb Shaw, and Daylen Kountz who each reached double figures.
During the second half, Nelson and the Bison cut their deficit down to as few as three points and trailed 60-57 with under six minutes to go. A late surge from Northern Colorado and Dalton Knecht, who recorded a double-double with 22 points and 12 rebounds, would add another tally into the loss column for North Dakota State.
Despite the loss, the Bison saw significant improvement from the offense in the second half. For the half, North Dakota State’s shooting improved in all three phases including a 52% mark from the field. Not only did Richman’s offense outscore the Bears 43-40 in the second half, but also upstaged their opponent in 2nd chance points, bench points, and points in the paint largely due to the play of Grant Nelson. Scoring 21 points in the 2nd half, Nelson nearly willed the Bison to victory offensively. Northern Colorado was not fazed by Nelson’s great prowess and continued to stay locked in offensively. After knocking down their tenth free throw on just ten attempts, the Bears officially put the game away.
As the Bison fell to 1-5, they would have a chance to redeem themselves on Saturday night against New Mexico Lobos.
Game Stats:
Grant Nelson; 31 Pts 7 Reb 3 Blk; Andrew Morgan; 14 Pts 6 Reb
Bison drop another in Lobo Classic to New Mexico 76-55 as shooting woes persist
In hopes of improving their offensive output early in games, North Dakota State took on the undefeated host of the Lobo Classic, the New Mexico Lobos of the Mountain West Conference.
Contrary to the Bison’s hopes of improving their first-half offense, North Dakota State took a step backward on Saturday night as they shot an abysmal 22% from the field in the first half. Despite the poor showing, New Mexico couldn’t get much going for themselves either as they only put up 32 points themselves in the first half. As the Bison were led by forward Andrew Morgan with 12 points, they found themselves trailing just 32-25 at the intermission.
The Bison were outscored in the first half in fast break points, points in the paint, and bench points but thanks to solid rebounding were able to outdo the Lobos in second-chance points 9-0. Although they shot just 50% from the line in the first half, the Bison’s opposition made just two more free throws and only one three-pointer in the game.
Although he scored a career-high 31 points on Friday night, leading scorer Grant Nelson scored just three points on 1-7 shooting from the field in only 20 minutes of action before fouling out. As aforementioned, leading the Bison was big man Andrew Morgan who recorded a team-high 22 points and eight rebounds to lead his team.
Leading the Lobos in scoring were a quartet of players, Jamal Mashburn, Jaelen House, Morris Udeze, and Josiah Allick who all eclipsed double figures. The ensemble scored a combined 55 points to pace the Lobos and led them to outscoring North Dakota State 44-30, 15 of which came off Bison turnovers.
The Bison offense would see improvement offensively in the second half once again. Improving their shooting percentage by nearly 25%, the Bison offense found some continuity as the half went along. Richman’s team, however, struggled from behind the arc, making just 27% of their long shots along with a subpar 64% mark from the free throw line.
With shooting splits of 31/21/57 for the game, the Bison will get one more chance to improve and get a win before leaving the Land of Enchantment. Hoping to avoid falling to 1-7, North Dakota State faced Jacksonville State in the finale.
Game Stats:
Andrew Morgan; 22 Pts 8 Reb; Boden Skunberg; 14 Pts 6 Reb 4 Ast
Bison drop finale of Lobo Classic to Jacksonville State 81-71
In hopes of attaining a win at The Pit in the Lobo Classic, the Bison looked to rebound off consecutive losses to Northern Colorado and New Mexico as they squared off with the Jacksonville State Gamecocks (3-4). Last Sunday, the Bison were without one of their top players Grant Nelson, who was out due to an ankle injury. Although Nelson has since returned to the lineup, fellow junior Boden Skunberg would miss this Sunday’s contest with an injury of his own.
Stepping in and conducting the offense off the bench were guards Luke Yoder and Jacari White. White, who had yet to play in the Lobo Classic, was averaging a meager 8.2 minutes per game. In just 14 minutes of time on Sunday, White scored a team-high 19 points on an incredibly efficient 7-9 from the field and 5-7 from behind the arc all whilst committing zero turnovers. White tallied all his points in the second half, a half in which North Dakota State amassed shooting splits of 56/53/90.
Handling much of the point guard duties on Sunday was junior guard Luke Yoder. A transfer from Division III Illinois-Wesleyan, Yoder brought his skillset to Fargo with two years of eligibility. In 29 minutes, Yoder showed his worth by scoring a season-high 15 points on 5-9 shooting. Yoder also dished out three assists and poked away two steals while committing just two turnovers. While freshman Tajavis Miller played in a season-low 13 minutes, it was crucial to see Yoder play valuable minutes for the Bison.
David Richman’s team continued to struggle in the first half from an offensive standpoint. As the Gamecocks led 32-23 at halftime, it marked the third straight game in which North Dakota State failed to reach the 30-point mark in the first half. Not having Skunberg available, Nelson battling an injury, and Andrew Morgan scoring just two points didn’t help the Bison’s cause on Sunday. The Bison made just 26% of their shots in the first half, but once again saw a resurgence in the second half.
The two halves were polar opposites from each other as North Dakota State shot the ball nearly 30% better in the second half for a mark of 55.6%. Also, due to the terrific play from White and Yoder, 39 of the Bison’s 48 second-half points came from the bench. Despite the great effort, Jacksonville State and its elite shooting were too much to handle for North Dakota State. Along with outscoring their opponent in fast break points and points in the paint, the Gamecocks managed to shoot a higher percentage than the Bison, as they connected on 57% of their shots and made seven of their twelve shots from downtown in the final 20 minutes.
As North Dakota State loses its third game in a row and falls to 1-7 on the season, the Bison have a few days off to get healthy before another road trip. The Bison will be back in action on Saturday, December 3, when they head west to take on Eastern Washington for a 4:00 p.m. tip. Following that game, the Bison will head to Portland, Ore. to take on the Portland Pilots on Monday, December 5, at 9:00 p.m.
Game Stats:
Jacari White; 19 Pts 7-9 FG 5-7 3P; Luke Yoder; 15 Pts 3 Ast 2 Stl 5-9 FG 3-5 3P