THIS WEEK
The North Dakota State (9-4, 3-0 Summit) women’s basketball team looks to stay unbeaten in Summit League play traveling to South Dakota State (11-5, 4-0 Summit) on Thursday night at 7:00 p.m. The Bison will conclude the trip at South Dakota (7-8, 3-1 Summit) on Saturday. Tip-off is scheduled for 1:00 p.m.
GAME COVERAGE
Radio: Andy Rieckhoff (play-by-play) will be on the call on Bison 1660 at South Dakota State. Kevin Culhane (play-by-play) will be on the call at South Dakota on Bison 1660.
Watch: The game at South Dakota State will be available Jackrabbits All-Access for subscribers. The contest at South Dakota will be available on Midco Sports Plus for subscribers.
GoBison.com: Live statistics, audio and video links are available on GoBison.com.
BISON QUICK HITS
- NDSU has won each of its last three games and is 3-0 in Summit League play for the first time since the 2014-15 season.
- The Bison most recently edged North Dakota, 81-76, last Saturday at Scheels Center.
- NDSU and South Dakota State enter the week tied for the top spot in the Summit League.
- South Dakota State has won its last four games, which is the longest win streak in the conference. The Jackrabbits most recently topped St. Thomas on the road, 61-51.
- South Dakota is slotted in third place in the Summit League and most recently dropped a 76-67 decision at Western Illinois.
- NDSU is receiving votes in the latest College Insider Mid-Major Top 25 poll.
- Heaven Hamling was named the TicketSmarter Summit League Peak Performer of the Week for the second time this season on Tuesday.
- Elle Evans has reached double figures in scoring in nine of the last 10 games, including a season-high 17 points at Central Michigan.
- Heaven Hamling has drained a team-high 33 three-pointers this season. She has totaled 157 triples over three seasons and ranks fourth all-time in NDSU history.
- Heaven Hamling leads the Summit League in three-pointers per game (2.54) and assist/turnover ratio (1.78).
LAST TIME OUT
NDSU picked up its eighth straight win over North Dakota, 81-76, on Saturday afternoon at Scheels Center. Heaven Hamling netted a game-high 28 points with six assists, six rebounds and four steals. Taylor Brown narrowly missed a double-double with 15 points and eight rebounds, while Emily Behnke also contributed 13 points and nine rebounds.
COLLEGE INSIDER MID-MAJOR TOP 25 POLL
NDSU is receiving votes in the latest College Insider Mid-Major Top 25 Poll. The Bison have been ranked as high as No. 19 in the poll this season. South Dakota State is the only Summit League team in the poll coming in at No. 4.
PEAK PERFORMER OF THE WEEK
For the second time this season, Heaven Hamling has been named the TicketSmarter Summit League Women’s Basketball Peak Performer of the Week. She logged her fourth 20-point game of the season with a game-high 28 points in the win over North Dakota. Hamling also passed out a game-best six assists with six rebounds and four steals against the Fighting Hawks.
Hamling became the first NDSU player to win multiple Summit League Player of the Week honors in the same season since Marena Whittle accomplished the feat in 2015-16.
LOCKED IN AT THE LINE
NDSU buried a season-high 33 free throws in the win over North Dakota with seven different players contributing at least one. Heaven Hamling led the way connecting on a career-high 14 free throws on 15 attempts, which is tied for the third-most in a single-game in NDSU history. She currently ranks second the Summit League and 13th in the nation in free throw percentage shooting 92.7 percent.
TOUGH DEFENSE
NDSU is limiting opponents to 63.7 points per game this season, which ranks second in the Summit League. The Bison have held seven opponents this season to 65 points or less, including a season-low 45 points against Valley City State. NDSU is 7-0 this season when holding opponents to 65 points or less.
BATTLING FOR REBOUNDS
NDSU has collected 40 or more rebounds in seven games this season. The Bison rank fourth in the Summit League averaging 38.38 rebounds per contest.
BALL MOVEMENT
NDSU distributed a season-high 20 assists in the win over Western Illinois with Abby Schulte leading the way with a game-high eight. It marked the most assists in a single-game since the Bison passed out 21 against Waldorf on Dec. 22, 2019.
IN THE ROTATION
Kristina Ekofo Yomane has provided a boost off the bench contributing at least four points and five rebounds in each of the last four games. She hauled in a season-high eight rebounds and netted a season-best seven points in the win over Western Illinois.
HEAVY WORKLOAD
Heaven Hamling and Elle Evans have both started all 13 games this season and averaging over 30 minutes per game. Evans is averaging 30.9 minutes, while Hamling is logging a team-high 32.4 minutes per game. Over three seasons at NDSU, Hamling is averaging 32.4 minutes per contest, which ranks fourth all-time Bison history.
HAMLING FROM DEEP
Heaven Hamling is one of the best three-point shooters in the Summit League and leads the conference in three-pointers per game with 2.54. She is also slotted second in three-pointers (33) and three-point percentage (36.3).
NOT PLAYING LIKE A FRESHMAN
Elle Evans is off to a fast start in her freshman season starting all 13 games and is averaging 11.8 points per game. That total ranks second among freshmen in the Summit League. Denver freshman guard Emma Smith leads all freshman in the conference with 13.0 points per game.
Evans has also hit double figures in scoring in nine of the last 10 games, including a season-high 17 points at Central Michigan.
BROWN FITS RIGHT IN
In her first season at NDSU, Taylor Brown has fit right in starting all 13 games. The Lakeville, Minn., native is averaging 9.3 points per game and has reached double digits in scoring in five games. Brown notched her first double-double of the season with a game-high 16 points and 10 rebounds in the win over Minnesota.
CONTRIBUTING OFF THE BENCH
Abbie Draper and Abby Graham have both come off the bench in all 13 games this season. Draper is averaging 5.8 points over 14.3 minutes per game. Graham has added 5.4 points over 20.6 minutes per contest.
HISTORIC PERFORMANCE
Heaven Hamling posted a career-high 39 points on 11-of-19 shooting from the field and 7-of-12 shooting from three in the win over Nevada. The Grand Rapids, Minn., native also went 10-of-10 from the free throw line and added six rebounds, three steals and one assist to her stat line.
Her 39 points rank as the third-most all-time in a single-game at NDSU and marked her second career 30-point performance. Her 39 points are tied for 10th in the nation in a single-game this season.
1,000 CAREER POINTS FOR NO. 11
Heaven Hamling has surpassed the 1,000 career points milestone with 1,109. She started her career at Stephen F. Austin State for one season in 2018-19 and netted 174 points. Hamling has totaled 935 points over the last three seasons at NDSU.
HAMLING CHASES HISTORY
Heaven Hamling enters the 2022-23 season with the opportunity to leave her name in NDSU history. She’s positioned inside the top 10 in Bison history in scoring average (6th, 14.2), three-point field goals made (4th, 157), three-point field goal percentage (3rd, .393), free throw percentage (2nd, .893), defensive rebounding average (8th, 3.7) and minutes average (4th, 32.4).
WHO’S BACK THIS YEAR?
The Bison return six letterwinnners from last season, including three starters: Heaven Hamling, Abby Schulte and Katie Hildebrandt.
NDSU GRAD
Heaven Hamling graduated in December with her degree in construction management and a minor in business administration. She will begin graduate school starting in January.
WELCOME TO THE SQUAD
The roster features eight newcomers this season: Taylor Brown, Kristina Ekofo Yomane, Abbie Draper, Elle Evans, Marwa Bedziri, Abby Graham, Leah Mackenzie and Georgia Baldwin.
NEW, BUT PLENTY OF EXPERIENCE
Three of the eight newcomers on the roster this season have played at least 10 NCAA games in their careers. Taylor Brown appeared in 95 games over four seasons at American and Abbie Draper played in 26 games with 15 starts during her freshman season at Bradley last year. Georgia Baldwin also appeared in 11 games at Eastern Kentucky over the last two seasons.
NEW LOOK COACHING STAFF
The NDSU coaching staff has a new look this season with addition of assistant coaches Jaime Adams and Michaela Crall. Adams is back for her second stint with the program after spending four seasons from 2008-12 as an assistant coach. She also played at NDSU from 1997-01 and was inducted to the Bison Athletic Hall of Fame in 2019.
Crall comes to NDSU after spending last season at Dubuque as an assistant coach. She also played for Wisconsin for three seasons from 2013-16 before starting her career in coaching as an undergraduate coach. Emily Dietz, who played at NDSU from 2017-22 and is the all-time leader games played, returns as a graduate manager this season.
PRESEASON ALL-SUMMIT LEAGUE FIRST TEAM
Heaven Hamling was selected to the Preseason All-Summit League First Team. She started all 29 games last season and logged a team-high 34.4 minutes per contest. Hamling ranked ninth in the Summit League with a team-best 14.3 points per game and reached double digits in scoring in 24 of 29 games. The Grand Rapids, Minn., native led the conference in three-point field goals per game with 2.31 and three-point field goal percentage shooting 39.0 percent.
SUMMIT LEAGUE PRESEASON POLL
NDSU was picked to finish fifth in the Summit League Preseason Poll. South Dakota State garnered 36 first place votes to take the top spot, while South Dakota picked up four first place votes in second place. Oral Roberts closed out the top three in third place.
BISON IN GREECE
Over the span of eight days, the Bison had the opportunity to practice, play two games and learn about the culture in Greece during a trip in August. NDSU spent the first four days in Athens before concluding the trip in Glyfada.
THE SERIES VS. SOUTH DAKOTA STATE
South Dakota State has won each of the last 17 meetings dating back to the 2014-15 season and leads the all-time series, 58-39. In their most recent encounter last season, the Bison came up short against the Jackrabbits, 76-60, at Scheels Center. Heaven Hamling led the way for NDSU with 13 points, four rebounds, three assists and two steals.
THE SERIES VS. SOUTH DAKOTA
South Dakota has won each of the last 13 meetings dating back to the 2016-17 season. However, NDSU leads the all-time series, 42-38, that dates back to 1977. In their most recent meeting last season, the Bison came up short against the Coyotes, 78-59. Heaven Hamling netted team-high 14 points, while Abby Schulte contributed 12 points.
LOOKING AHEAD
NDSU will return home against Denver on Thursday, Jan. 12. Tip-off is set for 7:00 p.m. at Scheels Center.
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