DJ Davis Kansas City Athletics

Fighting Hawks Cold From Field in 65-47 Loss to Roos

GRAND FORKS, N.D. (UND Athletics)– After shooting well over 50% from the field and scoring 99 points in a win over Omaha Thursday night, the North Dakota men’s basketball team went cold from the floor Saturday—shooting 39.5% in a 65-47 loss to Kansas City. The Fighting Hawks hit only three times from downtown after making 13 treys against the Mavericks Thursday.

B.J. Omot led the team with 15 points, while Amar Kuljuhovic led with nine rebounds. Tyree Ihenacho led with four assists while Eli King grabbed six steals—which tied for the most in the Division I era. The last player with six swipes in a game for the green and white was Geno Crandall on March 1, 2018 against Sacramento State.

Neither team got on the board in the first two minutes of play. Kansas City got the first basket at the 17:51 mark of the half, quickly answered by UND to tie at two. From there the Roos went on a 7-0 run to take the lead and led the rest of the way. With 9:15 left in the first half, UND trailed 18-9 but went on a 10-2 run—four points coming from Kuljuhovic and four from Omot. But the Roos quickly pushed the lead back to seven and led by that many at the break—30-23.

In the second half, Kansas City had pushed the lead to 14 when Ihenacho found King from the baseline and got it out to King who hit a three. On the other end Brady Danielson came up with a steal and then King found Omot in transition for a dunk and it made the game 43-34. But NoDak would get no closer the rest of the way.

The Fighting Hawks will be back on the road next week, traveling to Denver on Thursday then playing at Oral Roberts next Saturday.

Postgame Notes 

• For the fourth time in his career, Ihenacho picked up two blocks.
• King made two of the three three-pointers for UND.
• UND lost the battle on the glass for the first time since Jan. 6 at Northern Arizona.
• NoDak allowed the opponent to shoot over 50% for the first time since Jan. 3 against Northern Colorado.
• Treysen Eaglestaff saw his 21 game streak with a three pointer snapped.

How It Happened 

First Half

14:56 – Roos 9, UND 2

11:23 – Roos 11, UND 9

7:52 – Roos 18, UND 13

3:50 – Roos 20, UND 19

Half – Roos 30, UND 23

Second Half

15:56 – Roos 41, UND 27

11:25 – Roos 43, UND 34

7:44 – Roos 52, UND 35

1:53 – Roos 63, UND 44

Final – Roos 65, UND 47

Game Recap: Men’s Basketball | 2/10/2024 4:50:00 PM | Josh McSwain, FightingHawks.com

North Dakota falls to Kansas City on the road, 86-71

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The North Dakota women’s basketball team dropped an 86-71 decision at the Swinney Center to Kansas City Saturday afternoon.

The Roos brought the energy to begin the game, as they scored the first nine points and forced a North Dakota timeout just two minutes in. Kansas City’s lead would expand to 13 before the Fighting Hawks found their first points of the day on a pair of free throws from Kiyah Hurst. Kansas City was in an offensive rhythm during the first 10 minutes, connecting on 11-of-16 field goal attempts with a pair of three-pointers to bring a 25-11 lead into the second frame. KC had 14 points in the paint and eight points off five UND turnovers.

While the Hawks offense began to pick up their pace in the second quarter, Kansas City’s offense remained steady and matched UND’s point total to hold a 45-31 halftime lead. Borowicz paced the Fighting Hawks in the opening 20 minutes with 14 points on 5-of-9 shooting with three treys, while Destinee Oberg corralled six rebounds in eight minutes off the bench for UND. Both teams knocked down four three-pointers in the first half, but the difference came in the lane with KC holding an edge in points in the paint (24-8) and in points off turnovers (15-4).

Borowicz scored a team-high 25 points with four three-pointers, six assists and four rebounds. Hurst and Kiera Pemberton joined Borowicz in double-figures with 16 and 11 points, respectively. Hurst tallied three steals while Pemberton had two.

Kansas City opened the second half in similar fashion as the first quarter, with an 8-2 run that caused UND to call a timeout with 8:03 on the clock with a 53-33 KC lead. A pair of free throws midway through the period gave KC a 25 advantage, but the Hawks scored nine straight with points from four different players, to cut the deficit to 16. However, the Roos scored the next seven and led 70-47 going into the final frame.

The Fighting Hawks outscored KC 24-16 in the fourth quarter and brought a 26-point KC lead to as few as 14 points but were unable to pull within single-digits. Hurst knocked down a pair of three-pointers and went 4-of-6 from the field for 12 points in the fourth. UND made four of its nine triples in the final quarter with Borowicz and Mikayla Aumer also connecting from deep.

The Hawks will return to the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center for a pair of home games beginning with Denver Thursday night.

Postgame Notes 

• Kacie Borowicz scored 20+ points for the 11th time this season
• Borowicz’s four three-pointers is a new season-high and the second time she’s made three or more
• NoDak shot 15-for-33 in the second and fourth quarters, but 8-for-31 in the first and third
• North Dakota finished the game 16-for-17 from the free throw line
• UND connected on nine treys, the fourth time they’ve made seven of more in a game
• North Dakota had more offensive rebounds 14-10 and reached 10+ offensive boards for the 17th time
• The Roos outscored UND 42-20 in the paint
• KC is now 3-0 against UND at the Swinney Center

How It Happened 
Q1: KC 25, UND 11
Q2: KC 45, UND 31
Q3: KC 70, UND 47
Q4: KC 86, UND 71

Game Recap: Women’s Basketball | 2/10/2024 5:00:00 PM | Ethan Erdman, FightingHawks.com