The Basics
Score: No. 6 North Dakota 85, No. 3 South Dakota State 69
Records: North Dakota (11-21, 5-11 SL), South Dakota State (20-12, 11-5 SL)
Location: Denny Sanford PREMIER Center - Sioux Falls, S.D.
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – Junior Treysen Eaglestaff erupted for a career-high 51 points to lead No. 6 seed North Dakota to an 85-69 upset of No. 3 seed South Dakota State in the last of four quarterfinals at the 2025 Summit League Men's Basketball Championship on Friday at the Denny Sanford PREMIER Center.
Eaglestaff avenged a similar upset from a season ago when the third-seeded Fighting Hawks fell to sixth-seeded Omaha and sent the Jackrabbits to their first quarterfinal loss at the tournament since 2020.
Eaglestaff needed all 23 of his first-half points to keep UND within striking distance. The Jacks had built a 38-27 on free throws by Oscar Cluff with 2:03 to play but Eagles scored the final six points of the half to close the gap to 38-33.
The Jacks grabbed the momentum back with an 11-2 run to open the second half and had a 49-35 before Eaglestaff came back to life.
He had 18 points over the next seven minutes as the Fighting Hawks came all the way back to take a 58-56 after Eaglestaff buried all three free throws after being fouled on a shot beyond the arc.
It was Eaglestaff that carried the Fighting Hawks back, but it was Eli King and Zach Craft who each made big shots during an 13-4 run that pushed UND's lead to double figures for the first time.
As good as Eaglestaff and the offense were, the UND defense held the Jackrabbits to just two field goals over their final 26 attempts from the floor.
Cluff hit a 3-pointer in the final minute as his 27-point, 17-rebound effort was overshadowed by Eaglestaff's exploits. It was his eighth 20-15 game of the season, which is the most by a Division I player this season.
The Fighting Hawks will play St. Thomas in the second quarterfinal, which starts 25 minutes after the Omaha-South Dakota semifinal concludes. The men's semifinal session starts at 7:10 p.m. CT and those games will air nationally on CBS.
Turning Point
Eaglestaff hit a three-pointer to erase a 14-point, second-half deficit with 8:56 to play and from there, UND built its own double-digit lead over the next five minutes to advance to their first semifinal since 2020.
Inside the Box Score
- UND shot 41 percent from three-point range (13-for-32), while holding SDSU to a 10 percent clip (3-for-29).
- SDSU made only two of its final 26 field goal attempts after holding a 49-35 lead four minutes into the second half.
- Eaglestaff became the first Division I player to score 40-plus points in a game this season.
- Cluff's double-double of 27 points and 17 rebounds was his 22nd of the season, which ties former Jackrabbit Mike Daum for the most in Summit League history.
News & Notes
- With 51 points, Eaglestaff broke the Summit League Championship single-game scoring record, the North Dakota Division I single-game scoring record and became just the fifth player in conference history with a 50-plus point game
- Cluff closed out his season with his eighth 20-15 rebound game, which is three more than the next closest DI player, Auburn's Johni Broome (five).
- UND advanced to the program's first semifinal since reaching the title game during the 2020 season.
- The 2020 season was also the last tournament SDSU did not advance to the semifinals.
#SUMMITMBB
