FARGO, N.D. – The University of North Dakota and North Dakota State battled at the Sanford Health Athletic Complex Wednesday night in a battle of attrition that saw NDSU (4-1) rally to force overtime and down the Fighting Hawks (0-5) in a pre-Summit League tilt, 74-67.
 
 The Fighting Hawks led the bout for 39:24 and held an 11-point lead in the final 10 minutes of action against a Bison team that picked up a vote in the USA Today Coaches Poll this week. Julia Fleecs and Megan Zander both registered 20-point games as Fleecs led the Hawks with 21 points.

North Dakota played its best defensive basketball of the season in the opening frame, holding the Bison to zero field goals in their 16 attempts. The Fighting Hawks had not accomplished such a feat in a quarter within the last five years.

The Hawks' 11-2 run that included eight unanswered points to start the game set the tone for the opening 35 minutes of regulation. North Dakota State rallied back from the double-digit deficit and held UND to three points in the final four minutes.

North Dakota had a pair of chances to evade overtime in the final 10 seconds but could not convert and play the fifth overtime game in the UND-NDSU series, led by the Bison, 3-2.

Despite the loss, Interim Head Coach Mallory Bernhard emphasized that the Fighting Hawks have a will to win that's not indicative of the team's 0-5 start.

"There's a will to win with this team and of course we'd love to not be 0-5 but we've played five tough teams," Bernhard said in the postgame press conference. "Every single game I look at what our team is doing and we're getting better. We're preparing ourselves for Summit League play; that's what this is all about. We can still do some things. We still have a confident group that has proven that for stretches and for a good, good long stretch today, what we're capable of."

The University of North Dakota will close 2020 on Monday, Dec. 21, when it takes on the University of Toledo. Tipoff is set for noon Central time.