Men's Basketball

Top-seeded NDSU advances to semis with win over ORU

The Basics
Score: No. 1 North Dakota State 76, No. 8 Oral Roberts 65
Records: North Dakota State (25-7, 14-2 SL), Oral Roberts (10-23, 4-12 SL)
Location: Denny Sanford PREMIER Center - Sioux Falls, S.D.

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – No. 1 seed North Dakota State got 38 points in the paint and 24 from reserve players in earning a 76-65 victory over No. 8 seed Oral Roberts in the quarterfinals of the Summit League Men’s Basketball Championship at the Denny Sanford Premier Center.

The Bison did not trail beyond giving up the first basket of the game and led 36-26 at halftime. That’s despite six 3-pointers by Oral Roberts. The Golden Eagles totaled 13 3s for the game, but netted only seven two-point baskets.

Damari Wheeler-Thomas paced NDSU with 18 points, while Trevian Carson added 17. Noah Feddersen – the league Sixth Man of the Year – added 12 in a reserve role.

Sparked by Connor Dow, ORU went on a 10-0 run to get within 57-52 near the midpoint of the second half. But the Golden Eagles were held without a field goal over the subsequent 7 minutes and NDSU regained control.

Dow finished with a career-high 24 points, which included five 3-pointers. Luke Gray added 15 points for Oral Roberts.

The Bison will play No. 4 seed South Dakota or No. 5 Omaha in the first men’s semifinal at 7 p.m. Saturday.

Turning Point
NDSU controlled play in the first half by taking care of the ball and not giving up anything resembling a run. The longest Oral Roberts run in the first half was three points as the Bison built a 10-point lead at the break.

Inside the Box Score 
  • Oral Roberts’ leading scorer for the season, guard Ty Harper, fouled out with more than 6 minutes remaining in the game. He finished with 10 points. He entered the game averaging more than 30 points per game during the Golden Eagles' four-game winning streak that the Bison snapped.
  • Rebounding was a wash with both teams finishing with 38 boards, however NDSU owned a 16-11 edge on the o-glass and 23-12 edge in second-chance points.
  • Feddersen finished with his 12 points and equaled his career-high with 11 rebounds to post the fourth double-double of his career.
News & Notes
  • Oral Roberts beat No. 9 seed Kansas City 84-62 in the first round Wednesday night to earn a matchup with the Bison. That pushed the Golden Eagles’ win streak to four games – their longest of the season.
  • NDSU coach Dave Richman on Thursday was named a finalist for the Hugh Durham Award given to the top mid-major coach. Richman was named Summit League coach of the year earlier in the week. He’s now 19-8 as head coach in this tournament.
  • The Bison won a tournament game for the first time since 2023 when NDSU played in the title game for the fifth straight season - NDSU had lost quarterfinal tilts in 2023 and 2024.
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