QUICK JUMPERS

* North Dakota heads to Macomb, Ill. and St. Paul, Minn. to face Western Illinois and St. Thomas this weekend. The Fighting Hawks beat Denver 80-75 on Saturday, Jan. 8 to boost them to an overall record of 8-8 and a 2-3 conference record.

* The Fighting Hawks had four players end in double figures against Denver. Three of those players (Olivia Lane, Kacie Borowicz, and Claire Orth) had three players in double figures against Omaha too.

* Olivia Lane led the Fighting Hawks against the Pioneers. She scored 25 points, secured 11 rebounds, had one block and one steal.

*Kacie Borowicz ended the evening with 23 points, six rebounds, five assists, and one block.

* Melissa Leet finished the game with a double-double as well with 17 points, ten rebounds, and three blocks.

* Claire Orth ended the evening with 13 points, four rebounds, and one steal.

* The team are neck-in-neck for the series, they are tied at 4-4.

* The Western Illinois Leathernecks currently sit at an 11-3 overall record. They are currently 2-1 for conference play.

* Kacie Borowicz currently leads the Summit League with a .949 free-throw percentage. She is fourth in total scoring with 16.9 points per game.

* UND is currently averaging 67.3 points per game, and they are averaging 37.7 rebounds per game.

 * UND was ranked ninth in the Summit's Preseason Coaches' Poll. They currently sit tied for fourth with NDSU in the standings.

ON TAP

The North Dakota Fighting Hawks travel to Macomb, Ill. to face the Western Illinois Leathernecks. Opening tip is scheduled for 6 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 13.

LAST TIME OUT

The University of North Dakota beat Denver at the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center, 80-75. The Pioneers took the lead early, but the Fighting Hawks retook the lead. After various ties and lead changes, North Dakota ended the quarter up 19-17 off a three from Kacie Borowicz.  The Pioneers tied the game at 19 points each 17 seconds into the second. They took the lead seconds later off a three-point play by Uju Ezeudu (22-19). Olivia Lane and Borowicz responded with back-to-back baskets to give the Fighting Hawks the lead again (23-22). The teams continued to battle with back-and-forth baskets, but a three from Anna Jackson at 6:33 gave Denver a 28-27 lead. Tess Santos extended the lead with a three, but Leet and Orth scored continuous baskets to put North Dakota up yet again at 4:02. The teams failed to score again until 2:03 when Borowicz scored a layup to put the Hawks up by three. Meghan Boyd scored a layup at the buzzer for Denver, but UND maintained the lead, 34-33. The Fighting Hawks started the quarter with a 12-0 run before the Pioneers scored a jumper with 5:28 left in the third. This put Denver on a 9-0 run until they were stopped by layup from Borowicz with 3:37 left to play in the quarter. The teams traded baskets for the remainder of the third, but it was North Dakota who led 58-49 headed into the fourth. Denver started the fourth with momentum as they hit back-to-back threes to give them a 6-0 run and bring them within three (55-58). Lane responded with a layup and Borowicz added a three-point play seconds later to extend the lead to eight. The battle continued as both teams netted back-and-forth baskets towards the middle of the fourth. Jackson and Ezeudu scored back-to-back to put the Pioneers within four with :34 seconds left in the game. As the fourth wound down, the Pioneers continued to attack, but the Fighting Hawks were able to convert from the free-throw line to give them the 80-75 victory.

ALL-TIME WITH WESTERN ILLINOIS

The University of North Dakota is tied with Western Illinois in the series at 4-4. The last time that the two teams played each other was on Jan. 30, 2021. The Fighting Hawks fell to the Leathernecks in the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center, 74-83.

LEET AND LANE DOMINATE THE PAINT

Olivia Lane and Melissa Leet ended the game against Denver with a double-double each. Lane led the charge against the Pioneers with 25 points and 11 rebounds. Leet netted 17 points, ten rebounds, and had three blocks. Together, the post players earned 42 of the 80 points that the Fighting Hawks put on the board to earn the win.

THREE FOR DOUBLE FIGURES

Olivia Lane, Kacie Borowicz, and Claire Orth earned double figures for both games last week. Lane earned 12 against Omaha and 25 against Denver. Borowicz earned 17 points against Omaha and 23 against Denver. Orth was the final Fighting Hawk to earn in the double figures against both teams with 15 against Omaha and 13 points against Denver.

SCOUTING WESTERN ILLINOIS

Western Illinois enters the game with an 11-3 overall record and a 2-1 conference record. The Leathernecks opened their season on the road against Notre Dame with a loss of 50-76 and a win against Butler (73-46).  They continued the win streak at home hosting Chicago State (77-50), Bellarmine (105-82), and Missouri Baptist (103-43). They returned to travel and beat Tarleton State (58-54) but fell to Incarnate World (59-63). The Leathernecks hosted the Compass Classic, they went 2-0 during the tournament with a win against Northern Illinois (92-83) and Southern Illinois (85-80). This pushed them to another winning streak, which continued throughout non-conference play with SIUE (96-93) and Greenville (105-56). Their first conference game was against Denver, who they beat 72-66. They hosted Omaha as their second conference game, which resulted in a 77-70 win. Their first conference loss was to St. Thomas who beat the Leathernecks 66-64. Their games against Kansas City and Oral Roberts were postponed due to COVID protocol.

NEXT UP

Following Thursday night's game, the University of North Dakota travels to St. Paul, Minn., to face St. Thomas on Saturday, Jan. 15. The tip-off is scheduled for 1 p.m.