N. Dakota St. dismantles N. Dakota for Summit crown

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) — Top-seeded North Dakota State led from start to finish and overwhelmed No. 6 North Dakota 89-53 in the Summit League Tournament championship game on Tuesday night and secured the automatic NCAA Tournament bid.

NDSU’s leading scorer, Vinnie Shahid, led the Bison with 25 points on 8-of-14 shooting. Shahid entered the game averaging 18.2 points per game, but he blew by that early in the second half. Tyson Ward scored 15 of his 23 points in the second half for the Bison.

NDSU (25-8) raced to a 13-0 lead and had North Dakota down 21-2 in the first eight minutes of the game. The Bison continued to pour it on in the first half, building the lead to as many as 27 points at the break.

North Dakota State was never threatened the rest of the way and continued to build on the lead in the second half, pushing the margin to as many as 39 when Shahid scored to make it 86-47 with three minutes to play. NDSU shot 55% from the field.

The Bison used a solid defensive effort in the first half to create the big separation that North Dakota was never able to overcome. Down 26-7 with nine minutes to play, the Fighting Hawks were just 2 of 14 from the floor.

North Dakota’s Marlon Stewart entered the game as the league’s top scorer at 18.6 points per game, but struggled against the stingy NDSU defense in the early going. Stewart was just 2 of 8 from the floor with six points at halftime. He finished with 12 points and was never a factor. De’Sean Allen-Likens led the Fighting Hawks with 17 points.

BIG PICTURE

North Dakota: The Fighting Hawks finished sixth in the Summit League during the regular season and tried to become the first No. 6 seed to win the Summit League tournament since 2002.

North Dakota State: The Bison qualify for their fifth NCAA tournament in school history. North Dakota State defeated North Carolina Central 78-74 in a First Four victory before losing 85-62 to Duke last season.

UP NEXT

North Dakota: The Fighting Hawks finish the season 16-17.

North Dakota State: The Bison will await the selection show on Sunday where they will find out their NCAA tournament opponent.