VERMILLION, S.D. (NDSU Athletics) – North Dakota State junior Sam Griesel poured in a career-high 26 points to lead the Bison men’s basketball team to an 89-77 road victory over South Dakota on Sunday afternoon.
NDSU (13-11 overall, 11-5 Summit) secured the No. 3 seed for the Summit League Tournament, and will play No. 6 seed Kansas City in the quarterfinals on Sunday, Mar. 7, at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls. The Bison are the two-time defending Summit League Tournament champions.
Griesel shot 10-of-15 for the game, including 4-of-7 from beyond the arc. Tyree Eady added 18 points to match his career-high, and Jarius Cook and Rocky Kreuser both scored 13 for NDSU.
USD senior Stanley Umude scored 39 points to pace the Coyotes.
Griesel drained a deep three at the halftime buzzer to put NDSU ahead 40-37 at the break. Trailing 50-49 with just over 15 minutes left, the Bison scored eight straight on a three-pointer from Grant Nelson, a putback by Boden Skunberg, and a three by Griesel.
NDSU led the rest of the way, later pushing a 61-56 margin to 72-56 with an 11-0 run.
The Bison shot 51 percent overall and 11-for-24 (46 percent) from three-point range. The Coyotes shot 50 percent for the game, but NDSU’s 10-1 advantage in offensive rebounds played a significant factor in the outcome.
