This Week: The North Dakota State men’s basketball team will open the 2021-22 regular season at home against Concordia-Moorhead on Tuesday, Nov. 9, before starting a three-game road trip at Cal Poly on Friday, Nov. 12.
Tuesday, Nov. 9 vs. Concordia-Moorhead 7 p.m. CT
Friday, Nov. 12 at Cal Poly 4 p.m. CT / 2 p.m. PT
Where to Watch: Tuesday’s game vs. Concordia will be broadcast on WDAY Xtra, as well as on ESPN3, with Dom Izzo and Greg Stemen on the call. Friday’s game at Cal Poly will be carried on ESPN+.
Radio: Tuesday’s opener will be broadcast on 107.9 The Fox and Bison1660, as well as being streamed on the 107.9 The Fox app and the Bison1660 app. Jeff Culhane and Dexter Werner will call the action. Friday’s game will be carried on Bison 1660. Audio of all NDSU basketball games is also streamed free at GoBison.com/AllAccess.
Ranked Mid-Major: The Bison are ranked 25th in the preseason CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25 released this week.
Against Concordia: Tuesday will be the first regular season meeting between the Bison and Cobbers since Jan. 8, 2005, when NDSU won 71-56 in the Bison Sports Arena. NDSU has won eight straight exhibition games over Concordia since then.
Against Cal Poly: Friday will be the second-ever meeting between North Dakota State and Cal Poly in men’s basketball. The Bison beat the Mustangs 74-67 in a Veterans Day matinee on Nov. 11, 2019, inside the Scheels Center in Fargo.
Veteran Squad: The Bison return 94 percent of their scoring and 93 percent of their minutes played from the 2020-21 season.
Rocky’s Record Watch: Fifth-year senior Rocky Kreuser has played 125 career games – seven shy of tying and eight away from breaking Mike Felt’s (2009-14) NDSU career record of 132 games played.
Immediate Impact: Grant Nelson was named the Summit League Sixth Man of the Year last season as a true freshman, becoming the first Bison since Dexter Werner in the 2016-17 season to win the award.
Coaching Numbers: David Richman ranks fourth in NDSU history with 136 wins. His .610 winning percentage is the best in NDSU’s Division I era and the third-best by a Bison coach since 1930.
Rocky’s Rankings: Kreuser’s current rankings on the NDSU career charts:
- 6th in free throw percentage (.827)
- 6th in blocked shots (92)
- 7th in games played (125)
- 12th in three-pointers made (151)
- 18th in games started (93)
- 20th in rebounds (574)
Marksman: Tyree Eady ranks 16th in NDSU history for career three-point percentage at 39.0 percent.
Year In, Year Out: The Bison have played in three straight Summit League Tournament championship games, winning the title in 2019 and 2020, before falling in 2021 after erasing a 25-point halftime deficit to pull even with Oral Roberts in the final minute. NDSU has played in seven of the past nine Summit League Tournament championship games, dating back to March 2013.
Consistently Good: The Bison have achieved nine winning seasons in the past 10 years, with the lone exception being a 15-17 record in 2017-18 that ended in the semifinals of the Summit League Tournament.
Familiar Faces: NDSU returns its top eight players from last season in terms of minutes played.
Preseason Picks: The Bison have been picked to finish second in The Summit League this season, according to the annual preseason poll of league head coaches, sports information directors and media. NDSU’s Rocky Kreuser and Sam Griesel were voted to the preseason All-Summit League first team, and Tyree Eady claimed a spot on the second team.
Cleaning the Glass: NDSU averaged a +8.3 rebounding margin in Summit League play last season – the best in the league. NDSU’s +6.6 rebounding margin for the season ranked 23rd in the nation.
Charity Stripe: The Bison ranked 37th in the nation for free throw percentage last season at 76.0 percent.
Sammy Stats: Sam Griesel put single-game highs of 26 points, 14 rebounds, 12 assists, and 4 steals last season.
*Wes Offerman, NDSU Athletics
