University of St. Thomas Athletics
Saturday, March 7
Sioux Falls, S.D.
9:30 p.m. CT
24-9,12-4Summit League
66
vs
67
No. 3 North Dakota
18-16,10-6Summit League
1
2
F
North Dakota
28
39
67
St. Thomas (MN)
34
32
66
North Dakota upsets St. Thomas, 67-66, to advance to title game
3/8/2026 12:38:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Men’s Basketball’s Summit League run ends in the semifinal round
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. -- No. 2 seed St. Thomas men's basketball's Summit League Championship ended in the semifinal round as No. 3 North Dakota came away with a 67-66 victory in Sioux Falls, S.D. Nolan Minessale led the Tommies (24-9) with 23 points and nine rebounds while Ben Oosterbaan followed with 16 points on 8-of-12 shooting.
FIRST HALF: Carter Bjerke opened the scoring for St. Thomas with a 3-pointer before Ben Oosterbaan followed with a tip-in on the offensive glass to give the Tommies a 5-2 lead three minutes into the game. North Dakota answered by tying the score three times over the next several minutes, using a pair of 3-pointers to briefly regain the lead. Isaiah Johnson-Arigu responded with a 3-pointer of his own to even the score at 15-15 heading into the under-12 media timeout.
The Tommies began to create separation midway through the half with a 9-2 run, highlighted by four points from Nolan Minessale, to move ahead 26-20. Minessale later added a layup to push the lead to eight, but St. Thomas went cold from the floor, missing four straight shots as the Fighting Hawks trimmed the deficit to four. Johnson-Arigu and Hayden Tibbits scored late baskets to steady the Tommies, who carried a 34-28 advantage into halftime. Despite shooting just 35 percent from the field, St. Thomas dominated the glass with a 26-14 rebounding edge, including a 12-0 advantage on the offensive boards.
SECOND HALF: North Dakota chipped away early in the second half, cutting the Tommie lead to 38-36 less than five minutes in. A technical foul on the Fighting Hawks' bench gave Johnson-Arigu two free throws, and Nick Janowski followed with a 3-pointer to stretch the lead back to seven at 47-40. St. Thomas maintained at least a four-point cushion for several minutes before a pair of missed Tommie 3-point attempts allowed North Dakota to answer with back-to-back triples to tie the game, 54-54, with 7:15 remaining.
The Fighting Hawks held the lead late until Minessale converted a layup and two free throws to put St. Thomas ahead 64-63 with under two minutes to play. North Dakota responded with a free throw and regained the lead, 66-64, before Minessale drove for another layup to tie the score. Janowski forced a steal on the defensive end to give the Tommies a final chance, but a turnover returned possession to North Dakota. The Fighting Hawks drew contact on the ensuing play and converted one free throw with 0.1 seconds remaining to secure the win.
FOLLOW ALONG
For more information on St. Thomas Men's Basketball, follow along on X at @TommieMBBall and Instagram at @tommiehoops. Tommie Athletics is now on TikTok at @tommiesports.
-- St. Thomas Athletics --
FIRST HALF: Carter Bjerke opened the scoring for St. Thomas with a 3-pointer before Ben Oosterbaan followed with a tip-in on the offensive glass to give the Tommies a 5-2 lead three minutes into the game. North Dakota answered by tying the score three times over the next several minutes, using a pair of 3-pointers to briefly regain the lead. Isaiah Johnson-Arigu responded with a 3-pointer of his own to even the score at 15-15 heading into the under-12 media timeout.
The Tommies began to create separation midway through the half with a 9-2 run, highlighted by four points from Nolan Minessale, to move ahead 26-20. Minessale later added a layup to push the lead to eight, but St. Thomas went cold from the floor, missing four straight shots as the Fighting Hawks trimmed the deficit to four. Johnson-Arigu and Hayden Tibbits scored late baskets to steady the Tommies, who carried a 34-28 advantage into halftime. Despite shooting just 35 percent from the field, St. Thomas dominated the glass with a 26-14 rebounding edge, including a 12-0 advantage on the offensive boards.
SECOND HALF: North Dakota chipped away early in the second half, cutting the Tommie lead to 38-36 less than five minutes in. A technical foul on the Fighting Hawks' bench gave Johnson-Arigu two free throws, and Nick Janowski followed with a 3-pointer to stretch the lead back to seven at 47-40. St. Thomas maintained at least a four-point cushion for several minutes before a pair of missed Tommie 3-point attempts allowed North Dakota to answer with back-to-back triples to tie the game, 54-54, with 7:15 remaining.
The Fighting Hawks held the lead late until Minessale converted a layup and two free throws to put St. Thomas ahead 64-63 with under two minutes to play. North Dakota responded with a free throw and regained the lead, 66-64, before Minessale drove for another layup to tie the score. Janowski forced a steal on the defensive end to give the Tommies a final chance, but a turnover returned possession to North Dakota. The Fighting Hawks drew contact on the ensuing play and converted one free throw with 0.1 seconds remaining to secure the win.
FOLLOW ALONG
For more information on St. Thomas Men's Basketball, follow along on X at @TommieMBBall and Instagram at @tommiehoops. Tommie Athletics is now on TikTok at @tommiesports.
-- St. Thomas Athletics --
Team Stats
UND
UST
FG%
.500
.417
3FG%
.368
.167
FT%
.615
.600
RB
25
39
TO
9
9
STL
5
6
Game Leaders
Pts
23
FGM
8
3FGM
0
FTM
7
Pts
16
FGM
8
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Pts
8
FGM
1
3FGM
1
FTM
5
Pts
8
FGM
3
3FGM
2
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
F
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's Basketball
G
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