Clash of Titans: Fighting Hawks and Roos Gear Up for Saturday Showdown!

North Dakota vs. Kansas City || 1/18 (1 p.m.)
14th encounter, KC leads 8-5
Grand Forks, N.D. (Betty Engelstad Sioux Center)

COMPLETE GAME NOTES ARE AVAILABLE HERE

GRAND FORKS, N.D. – The third week of Summit League action wraps up on Saturday as Kansas City arrives in Grand Forks for a crucial matchup between two conference rivals seeking a win. The tip-off at the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center is scheduled for 1 p.m. Fans can follow the action live with UND men’s basketball radio announcer Paul Ralston on KSNR 100.3 FM The Cat or via the iHeart Radio app, while the game will be broadcast on Midco Sports and the Summit League Network. Live stats will be accessible at www.FightingHawks.com.

HISTORICAL OUTLOOK

The teams clash for the 14th time overall in a series that originally commenced in 2008. Both teams secured road wins in the series during the previous season. KC currently leads the series 8-5, although UND has claimed victory in three of the last four encounters. The Roos possess a 5-2 record all-time at the Betty. 

SIX ATTRIBUTES TO KNOW ABOUT KANSAS CITY

1) Kansas City leads the league in steals per game (8.4) and turnovers created per game (13.53). Davontae Hall tops the league with a 2.06 assist-to-turnover ratio and is second in total assists with 66. 

2) The Roos excel in perimeter defense, boasting a league-leading 30.0% effectiveness.

3) KC showcases the best scoring defense in the Summit League at 65.6% which places them in the nation’s top 40 and contributes to the league’s best scoring margin at +10.1. Jamar Brown ranks among the top five in both total steals and steals per game. 

4) Brown’s 16.1 ppg is a team high for KC, ranking sixth in the Summit League. 

5) Brown and Cameron Faas are both positioned in the top eight in the Summit League for three-pointers per game at 2.1+. Together, Brown, Faas, and Jayson Petty have combined for 107 three-point shots. 

6) The Roos hold a top 40 national ranking in free throw percentage at 76.6%, leading the Summit League. Brown ranks first in the Summit League at 88.5% with Jayson Petty following closely with a top 10 league percentage at 75.8%.

CHASING THE PEAK

St. Thomas and Omaha enter Saturday without losses. Four teams have two losses in league action, with North Dakota State slightly ahead of the others with three wins. Oral Roberts and North Dakota each have a single league victory, while Denver remains winless at 0-5. 

In early October, North Dakota was projected to finish in sixth place in the Summit League preseason poll. The Hawks were one of six teams to receive a first-place vote and accumulated 283 points in a highly competitive Summit League ranking. North Dakota trailed just 22 points behind projected fifth-place Oral Roberts, which garnered two first-place votes. St. Thomas edged out the Golden Eagles for fourth, while Kansas City, South Dakota State, and North Dakota State secured the top three spots. The sixth-place prediction, the second highest under Sather, matches last season’s fifth-place ranking and is on par with the Hawks’ position prior to the 2020-21 season.

The nine-member mid-major league achieved a collective non-conference record of 69-64. Four Summit League teams, including North Dakota, enter league play on winning streaks, with North Dakota State’s eight-game run positioning the Bison for a league-best 11-4 start. Kansas City has won four consecutive games, while Omaha joins UND as victors of their last two contests.

PREVIOUS OUTING

North Dakota men’s basketball faced a challenging start at the energetic First Bank & Trust Arena, matching the pace of the host Jackrabbits for the initial twelve minutes. However, South Dakota State leveraged a strong shooting performance from five players in double-figure scoring to secure a 109-73 victory over the Fighting Hawks on Thursday night during Summit League play.

 

First-half action witnessed five ties and five lead changes, but the Jackrabbits unleashed a 10-0 run in just under 90 seconds as the clock approached the nine-minute mark, establishing a 35-26 lead. The Hawks attempted to keep the contest close with three-pointers from redshirt freshman Zach Kraft and junior Treysen Eaglestaff, along with a basket inside from sophomore Mier Panoam, but an 11-4 Jackrabbit run in the last 4:30 of the opening half resulted in a 15-point SDSU lead at halftime.

 

After intermission, the trend continued as the Jackrabbits maintained a shooting percentage of 56.8% from the field, while UND struggled with a 1-for-22 shooting slump halfway through the period.

ABUNDANCE OF POINTS

Sophomore Mier Panoam has shown his scoring ability and since the calendar turned to 2025, the Tulane transfer has been filling the score sheet. Panoam enters Saturday averaging 19.0 points per game with three consecutive 20+ point games at the start of league competition. During this stretch, Panoam has shot 49.3% (36-of-73) from the field and 77.8% (21-of-27) from the free throw line. He recorded a career-high 24 points at home against Omaha, followed by his first career double-double with 20 points and 12 rebounds against St. Thomas, and exceeded his Omaha performance with 28 points on a career-best 12 successful shots during the road victory at Denver. Against Oral Roberts, he added 13 points and at South Dakota State, he netted ten for his seventh consecutive game in double figures and 14th this season.

Moreover, Panoam has also contributed 38 rebounds, 17 assists, and four steals. 

A MILE HIGH IN SEASON BESTS

UND’s victory over the Pioneers marked the 21st road win for the program during Sather’s coaching tenure and the 34th against Summit League opponents. The Hawks’ 95 points were the most scored against a Division I opponent this season, marking the third occasion this season that UND has surpassed 90 points and the seventh occurrence of a Sather-led team achieving 90+ points in Summit League play. UND registered a season-high shooting percentage of 51.6% from the field while achieving season highs in free throws made (24) and attempted (32). Additionally, UND’s 13 steals were the second-highest this season, most against a Division I opponent, and only the second time this season the Hawks have reached 10+ steals in a game.

HANDLE WITH DELICATE CARE

The Hawks boast a +3.6 turnover margin in Summit League games, currently the best in the conference. UND has turned the basketball over fewer than nine times in three of its five league games and has maintained nine or fewer turnovers in five of the last seven contests. UND’s 1.41 assist-to-turnover ratio in five SL games stands as the third-best in the league. 

THE BIG O

Following his remarkable performance against #6 Alabama and a home win versus South Dakota Mines, junior guard Treysen Eaglestaff was named the Summit League Peak Performer of the Week for the second time this season and the fifth time in his career. 

In addition, Eaglestaff’s contributions were acknowledged on the

national platform as he was one of five athletes selected as an Oscar Robertson National Player of the Week for contests concluding on Sunday, Dec. 22. Eaglestaff was accompanied by Donovan Dent (New Mexico), Caden Pierce (Princeton), Erik Reynolds (Saint Joseph’s), and Bruce Thornton (Ohio State). He is the first Hawk to achieve this recognition since the award’s establishment in the 2009-10 season.

SCORING 40 & HITTING 1K

Eaglestaff’s scoring exhibition against Alabama culminated with a step-back, near-corner three-pointer that swished the net, bringing UND within three points of the Crimson Tide’s lead late in the game, in addition to earning him a scoring record at the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center and a career-high single-game performance while also marking his milestone of 1,000 career points. He is the 39th athlete in the program’s history to reach this milestone and the 12th to do so during UND’s Division I tenure (2008-09).

LEADING SCORER

Eaglestaff stands among the premier scorers in the Summit League, ranking third with an average of 18.3 points per game (58th DI) and holds the 11th position nationally in total points with 365. He is 24th in the nation in field goals (122) and 10th in field goal attempts (293), both leading statistics in the Summit League.

Furthermore, he ranks 24th nationally in three-point attempts (142) and 66th in three-point conversions (486). His average of 2.40 made three-pointers per contest is the third-best in the league.

Eaglestaff has scored in double figures in each of his first 17 games of the season, surpassing the 20-point mark in seven of those outings. He concluded his sophomore season achieving double-digit points in the last six games, making it a streak of 23 games with 10+ points.

ON THE RISE

Eaglestaff aims to move up the program’s record books as he currently shares the fifth position for career three-pointers with 185, establishing himself as the program’s top three-point shooter among players who completed their entire careers during UND’s D1 era. The Bismarck native is just 15 made three-pointers away from being the fourth player in the program’s history to hit 200 career three-pointers. In addition, Eaglestaff has progressed to third all-time on the Hawks’ D1 three-point attempt list and currently rests fifth on the all-time leaderboard. Eaglestaff continues to ascend the scoring charts and is positioned at #34 with 1,102 career points.

KRAFTHREE

Local residents from Grand Forks and the surrounding Red River Valley are well-acquainted with redshirt freshman guard Zach Kraft. Those who aren’t should pay attention. The former Red River HS star’s emergence as a significant contributor off the bench for North Dakota accelerated rapidly throughout December.

Kraft made his collegiate debut during the season opener at Colorado State, scored his initial career points against Dickinson State in Bismarck, and across his first nine games with the Fighting Hawks, he accumulated slightly over 48 minutes of playing time, attempted seven shots (six from beyond the arc) with two successful conversions, and contributed two rebounds and two assists.

Then came Alabama. Kraft surged with nine crucial points from long range during the clash with the Crimson Tide. He entered the matchup with two successful three-point attempts in his fledgling career, then proceeded to sink three three-pointers and recorded a steal in a career-high 18 minutes on the floor. His first shot gave the Hawks a 19-12 lead at the 11:27 mark of the opening half, his second three-pointer extended UND’s lead to four at 32-28 with 4:44 remaining in the half, and his final three-pointer narrowed the Hawks’ second-half deficit to five, proving vital in UND’s response to a 14-2 Alabama run.

During the past eight games, Kraft has logged 131+ minutes (16.4 mpg) and boasts a shooting percentage of 45.7% from the field (21-of-46) with a three-point success rate of 44.2% (19-of-43). He has made no fewer than two three-point shots in each of the initial six games during this eight-game stretch, including personal bests of four three-pointers made and 12 points in the non-conference finale win over Waldorf.

1KULJUHOVIC

Senior forward Amar Kuljuhovic achieved a significant personal milestone at Utah Valley. The Waterloo, Iowa native surpassed 1,000 career points during his collegiate journey with a 13-point performance against the Wolverines. He accumulated 624 points during two seasons at Lake Land College and presently has 482 points in 51 games while playing as a Fighting Hawk.

The scoring achievement isn’t the sole milestone within reach for Kuljuhovic, as he is 87 rebounds away from reaching 1,000 for his career. He amassed 511 at LLC and currently has 402 as a Fighting Hawk, with 146 coming from the offensive end.

Kuljuhovic’s rebounding contributions over 20 games have positioned him third among Summit League players in total rebounds with 135. He also holds the third position in offensive rebounds per game (3.15) and ranks fourth in rebounding average (6.8). Moreover, Kuljuhovic ranks fifth in free throw attempts with a team-leading 95 and is ninth in successful free throws with 63.

DARIYUS FROM DEEP

First-year Fighting Hawk, Dariyus Woodson, a TJC transfer and Baytown, Texas resident, holds a pair of top-10 standings among Summit League three-point shooters as league play begins. Woodson sits fourth in the SL for three-point attempts with 116 and ninth in conversions with 48. His average of 1.95 made three-pointers per game ranks 11th in the SL, while his overall scoring average of 11.0 ppg places him among the top 20 scorers within the league.

TRAVELING HAWKS

Eight of North Dakota’s 15 non-conference contests took place outside the state. UND’s matchup against Eastern Washington capped a five-game stretch away from Grand Forks, which included three true road games. The Hawks’ west coast game against Loyola Marymount marked the first time in program history that UND men’s basketball played in every one of the four time zones within the continental United States prior to December.

In addition to UND’s in-state neutral matchup against Dickinson State in Bismarck, the Hawks traveled nearly 11,000 miles during the first five weeks of the season. The squad’s first-semester travel totaled over 16,200 miles during its non-conference schedule.

ACTIVE STRETCH

The Hawks endured a packed ten-day sequence leading up to the Christmas festivities. North Dakota began with UVU in Orem (L, 57-80) and concluded the stretch on Friday, December 20 against South Dakota Mines (W, 80-48) in Grand Forks. In that timeframe, the Hawks visited Texas-San Antonio (Dec. 13; L, 76-80), hosted Texas-San Antonio (Dec. 15; L, 85-95), and faced #6/7 Alabama until the very last moment (Dec. 18; L, 90-97) within the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center.

NOW BOARDING

The offensive rebounds have been controlled by UND in 16 of the squad’s 19 games, with the Hawks having been out-rebounded on the offensive end only once.

UND has secured 12 or more offensive rebounds in every game except for the season opener at Colorado State. Eight Hawks have achieved 10+ offensive boards this season, with Amar Kuljuhovic leading with 63. Brian Mathews follows with 40, and Mier Panoam completes the top three with 38.

North Dakota ranks 10th nationally in offensive rebounds per game with an average of 14.80; a figure that leads the Summit League. The team’s overall rebounding average of 38.95 sits second in the league and is within the top 55 nationally. Overall, the Hawks have surpassed their opponents in rebounding on a dozen occasions this season.

DOUBLE TROUBLE

No Hawk had achieved a double-double of any kind prior to the Big Sky-Summit Challenge on December 4. Despite this, after a pair of encounters with Big Sky opponents, two different Hawks contributed to the double-double tally. The subsequent week saw two Hawks achieve double-doubles in the road defeat at UTSA, and two days later Deng Mayar joined Amar Kuljuhovic as Hawks with two such performances.

efforts thus far this season. 

Amar Kuljuhovic contributed 17 points and twelve rebounds in a loss on the road at Eastern Washington. He also added two assists and a block in 31 minutes on the court. This marked his ninth double-double in his time as a Hawk. 

Three nights afterwards, Natsvishvili played 24 minutes and exploded for twelve points and ten rebounds in a standout performance for the sophomore and first-year Hawk. Before this game, he had tallied just seven points along with 11 rebounds over seven games totaling 60 minutes. 

In the matchup against the Roadrunners, Kuljuhovic achieved his tenth double-double as a Hawk with ten points and 11 rebounds, including nine on the offensive side. Deng Mayar equaled this effort with ten points and 11 boards, seven of which were on the defensive side, and two nights later, Mayar recorded his second double-double with 14 points and ten rebounds.

Most recently, sophomore transfer guard Mier Panoam became the fourth Hawk this season to achieve a double-double, finishing with 20 points and 12 rebounds while nearly attaining a triple-double by adding six assists. 

FEAR MIER

Panoam has ignited significant energy for the Hawks in his first year in Grand Forks, particularly with his knack for driving to the basket. Alongside his blazing start in Summit League competition, Panoam stands second on the team with a top 15 scoring average in the Summit League at 13.1 ppg. He ranks within the top 10 of the league for field goal attempts (209, 8th), rebounds (108, 6th), free throw attempts (89, 7th), and free throw conversions (63, 9th), and has contributed to seven of UND’s 23 three-point plays. His total of 94 successful field goals is the seventh highest in the Summit League. 

MORE MAYAR

Deng Mayar notched consecutive double-double performances over a weekend home-and-home series versus UTSA. Across two contests against the Roadrunners, Mayar averaged 27.1 minutes and shot 53.3% (8-of-15) from the field with a 50% (3-of-6) rate from beyond the arc. He went 5-of-7 from the charity stripe, averaging 12.0 points over the two games. Mayar topped UND in rebounding, averaging 10.5 boards per game, including the second highest offensive rebounds total at eight. 

THE BOOK OF ELI

Junior Eli King is well-acquainted with the box score. The native of Caledonia, Minnesota, has been active on both ends of the court, contributing significantly to North Dakota in 20 appearances this season.

King has played over 30 minutes in 11 contests this season and in three of the initial four SL games. He recorded a career-best 37 minutes during the home victory against Weber State. In that triumph, he scored in double digits for the second occasion this season, achieving a season-high 13 points along with two rebounds, two steals, and one assist. This double-figure scoring accomplishment was the 11th in his UND career.

With 571 minutes played, the second most among Hawks, King ranks fourth on the team in offensive rebounds with 27, including six against Notre Dame, and maintains the third-highest rebounding average at 4.9. King’s 98 total rebounds place him eighth in the SL. He has recorded 11 games this season with 5+ rebounds and four games with 3+ steals, including five against Waldorf. He leads the team with steals (29) and is also the top performer for UND in offensive fouls drawn this season with 14. His combined steal total and an average of 1.5 per game ranks third in the Summit League. 

UND BY THE NUMBERS

34- The total number of Summit League victories for the Hawks under head coach Paul Sather. The Hawks achieved a record high of 10 Summit League wins last season and have won seven or more league games in a season on three occasions under Sather.

19.0- The average points per game scored by Mier Panoam five games into Summit League competition. He achieved three consecutive games with 20+ points to commence league play, featuring a career-high of 28 points against Denver.

10- UND’s national ranking in offensive rebounds per game. The team’s average of 14.80 leads the Summit League. UND has gathered a dozen or more offensive rebounds in 19 of 20 games this season, a feat unmatched by any other Sather-coached UND team.

4- The number of Hawks that have secured double-doubles this season. Mier Panoam is the most recent with 20 points and 12 rebounds against St. Thomas, joining Amar Kuljuhovic (2), Deng Mayar (2), and George Natsvishvili.

1- The number of three-point baskets required by junior guard Treysen Eaglestaff to ascend into fifth place outright on the program’s career list. His total of 185 three-pointers made is the highest among Hawks who have concluded their entire careers at the DI level.

A UND WIN WOULD

» Represent the 6th all-time victory against KC and the fourth in the last five matchups

» Provide the Hawks with a crucial second Summit League win

» Enhance UND’s record to 35-55 against league opponents under Sather

» Be more favorable than a loss