Leathernecks Lose on the Road at North Dakota State

FARGO, N.D. - Western Illinois trailed at halftime by seven, but North Dakota State erupted over the final 20 minutes as the Leathernecks dropped a 68-48 decision Thursday night (Feb. 10). The loss drops Western to 7-17 overall and 2-11 in the Summit League.

Kaimarr Price started the scoring in the game then he and Matt Lander combined for the first seven points to take a 7-6 lead. NDSU went on a 5-0 run but Western regained the lead on baskets by Emeka Okafor Jr., Abdou Niang and Lander.

Jack Houpt's driving basket gave the Leathernecks a 15-13 edge at the 4:46 mark. However, over those final minutes Taylor Braun went on a scoring tear netting all nine of his points in that span. Mike Felt hit a pair of 3-pointers as the Bison used a 13-4 run to close out the half as Western trailed 26-19.

Early on Western had already blocked four shots and recorded six steals, shooting 39 percent from the field in the half. NDSU warmed up for 38.5 percent over the first 20 minutes, and hit 4-of-6 free throws as Western did not attempt a shot from the charity stripe.

Lander scored three quick points in the second half as Western trailed 26-22. Marshall Bjorklund hit the first of two free throws, then Houpt followed with a baseline jumper cutting the deficit to three at the 17:44 mark.

The two teams both went scoreless for three minutes before Jelani Johnson hit a jumper to cut the deficit to 40-33. NDSU (13-11, 7-7) scored seven straight to pull away, capping the run when Drew Lundberg hit a 3-pointer at the 10 minute mark. Okafor, Jr. hit consecutive baskets but the Leathernecks were trading field goals with the Bison and would get no closer than 14 down the stretch.

Lander (16 points) and Okafor, Jr. (9) accounted for 25 of the team's 29 points in the second half.

“When it was 40-31 and we couldn't score for three minutes, we just don't have enough perimeter players right now. We turned the ball over too many times and KP (Kaimarr Price) was in foul trouble,” said head coach Jim Molinari. “It wasn't that we didn't shoot the ball well, we turned the ball over too many times. I thought Emeka played a good game, he played strong inside. I think everyone is getting a little better, but we simply have to cut down on our mistakes.”

Western shot 44 percent overall from the field compared to 45 percent for NDSU. Western also made 72.7 percent at the line (8-of-11), better than the season percentage. However, the Leathernecks committed 18 turnovers and NDSU held a 33-24 edge on the glass, including eight more offensive rebounds.

Lander led all scorers with 21 points, his seventh 20-point game this season. Okafor, Jr. scored a career-high 13 points and led the team with six rebounds.

Braun recorded 16 points and nine rebounds for the Bison, which doubled Western at the free throw line (16-of-21 to 8-of-11). The Leathernecks did hold NDSU leading scorer Michael Tveidt under his average, just 10 in the game.

The Leathernecks continue Summit League play Saturday night (Feb. 12) at South Dakota State. Tipoff in Brookings is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.

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