North Dakota State visits Branch and UMKC

By Canadian Press on January 7, 2026.

North Dakota State Bison (12-5, 2-0 Summit League) at UMKC Roos (4-12, 1-1 Summit League)

Kansas City, Missouri; Thursday, 8 p.m. EST

BOTTOM LINE: UMKC faces North Dakota State after Karmello Branch scored 20 points in UMKC’s 73-66 victory against the Omaha Mavericks.

The Roos have gone 3-3 at home. UMKC is 2-3 when it turns the ball over less than its opponents and averages 13.4 turnovers per game.

The Bison are 2-0 in conference games. North Dakota State ranks second in the Summit League with 34.0 rebounds per game led by Trevian Carson averaging 7.1.

UMKC’s average of 6.3 made 3-pointers per game is 1.2 fewer made shots on average than the 7.5 per game North Dakota State allows. North Dakota State’s 45.7% shooting percentage from the field this season is 2.1 percentage points lower than UMKC has given up to its opponents (47.8%).

The Roos and Bison face off Thursday for the first time in Summit League play this season.

TOP PERFORMERS: CJ Evans is averaging 11.9 points and 4.1 assists for the Roos. Branch is averaging 13.0 points and 2.2 rebounds while shooting 38.5% over the past 10 games.

Damari Wheeler-Thomas averages 2.0 made 3-pointers per game for the Bison, scoring 14.5 points while shooting 37.6% from beyond the arc. Carson is shooting 58.4% and averaging 15.2 points over the past 10 games.

LAST 10 GAMES: Roos: 3-7, averaging 73.2 points, 32.0 rebounds, 12.4 assists, 7.4 steals and 2.9 blocks per game while shooting 43.1% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 79.0 points per game.

Bison: 7-3, averaging 81.2 points, 35.3 rebounds, 13.8 assists, 8.6 steals and 2.6 blocks per game while shooting 45.9% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 74.3 points.

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.

The Associated Press

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