January 11th At Kansas City
North Dakota State won a close match in double overtime against Kansas City 92-91 at the Swinney Center. Boden Skunberg finished with a team-best 23 points, six rebounds, and five assists. Freshman Noah Fedderson scored a career-high 18 points, while Andrew Morgan added 17 points while shooting 7 of 8. The Bison kept their lead throughout the entire first half, having as much as an 11-point lead and leading 36-31 at the half. NDSU continued to maintain their lead in the second half until nine minutes left in regulation when a jumper made by the Roos made the score 52-50, Kansas City. The intensity increased and with 29 seconds left of regulation, Morgan and the Bison made a pair of free throws to the game at 73. When the first overtime came close to an end, NDSU guard Tajavis Miller tied it up at 79 with a jumper with 33 seconds left, eventually bringing the game into a second OT. Fedderson then started the second overtime with plenty of energy when he sank back-to-back three-pointers, giving the Bison an 85-79 lead. NDSU then protected their lead for the remaining three minutes of 2OT with the luck of a missed three-point attempt by the Roos with two seconds left on the clock. The Bison put up a total of 13 points in the final OT period. Overall, the Bison shot 53 percent from the field, 47 percent from the three, and 53 percent from the free throw line.
January 13th At Omaha
North Dakota State was back at it two days later against Omaha, this time going right back into overtime falling to the Mavericks 96-92 at Baxter Arena. Damari Wheeler-Thomas led the Bison with a career-high 30 points, Andrew Morgan added 24 points, and Boden Skunberg had 18 points. Jacari White also contributed with his career-high six assists, 15 points and six rebounds. In a very physical contest, both sides of the court finished the first half shooting over 58 percent from the field goal, with NDSU shooting 63 percent. The Bison took the lead two times in the second half but lost it to Omaha after the Mavericks went on a 10-2 run, making the score 78-77 Mavericks, with three minutes left. The game went into overtime tied at 82. Although NDSU was undefeated in overtime this season (3-0) and undefeated against the Mavericks since 2019 (9-0), they could not keep it that way after Omaha drained a pair of three-pointers and went 6 for 6 at the free throw line. The competitive matchup ended with the Mavs on top 96-92. The game featured 10 lead changes and eight ties, making Omaha tied for first in the Summit League with St. Thomas. NDSU shot 57 percent from the field and 46 percent from behind the arc.
They will return home to host Denver on Thursday, January 18th, and Oral Roberts on Saturday, January 20 at the Scheels Center.