THIS WEEK         
The North Dakota State women's basketball team is set to open the 2025-26 season at Northern Iowa on Monday. Tip-off is set for 6:00 p.m., at McLeod Center.
 
GAME COVERAGE
Watch: The contest will be available on ESPN+ for subscribers.
 
Radio: Andy Rieckhoff (play-by-play) will be on the call on Bison 1660 with pregame coverage beginning at 5:30 p.m. Fans can also listen to the radio broadcast for free on GoBison.com/allaccess and the NDSU Athletics mobile app.
 
GoBison.com: Live statistics, audio and video links are available on GoBison.com/coverage.
 
BISON BASKETBALL RADIO COACHES SHOW
The Bison Basketball Radio Show with NDSU men's basketball head coach David Richman and women's basketball head coach Jory Collins will broadcast live on Bison 1660 from the Holiday Inn Fargo on Mondays throughout the season from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. Fans are invited to attend in-person and submit questions for the show as hosts Sam Neidermann and Andy Rieckhoff break down the week of Bison basketball and preview the upcoming games. The show airs the following dates in November: Nov. 10 (men's only) and Nov. 24.
 
BISON BASKETBALL TV COACHES SHOW
Join host Sam Neidermann, men's basketball head coach David Richman and women's basketball head coach Jory Collins for highlights, analysis and feature stories throughout the season on The Bison Basketball Show airing at 9:30 p.m. on Wednesdays and 6:30 p.m. on Thursdays on WDAY Xtra beginning on Nov. 26.
 
A NEW SEASON BEGINS
NDSU returns six starters and seven letterwinners this season from last year's team that advanced to the Women's National Invitation Tournament (WNIT) Great 8 Round. The Bison have finished inside the top three of the Summit League standings each of the last three seasons.
 
IN SEASON OPENERS
Under head coach Jory Collins, the Bison are 3-3 in season openers dating back to the 2019-20 season. NDSU has dropped each of its last two season openers, including a 84-78 loss to Drake last season in Fargo. However, the Bison boast a 2-1 record under Collins in road season openers. The only loss was at Northern Iowa on Nov. 6, 2019, which was Collins head coaching debut at NDSU.
 
THE SERIES VS. NORTHERN IOWA
This will mark the 11th all-time matchup between NDSU and Northern Iowa dating back to 2008 with the Panthers leading the series, 8-2. This will also be the fifth meeting since 2019 in the series, including the Panthers topping the Bison, 79-70, in Cedar Falls in the most recent meeting in 2022.
 
SUMMIT LEAGUE PRESEASON POLL        
For the second time in the last three seasons, NDSU was picked to finish second in the Summit League Preseason Poll. The Bison garnered 498 total points with two first-place votes to earn the second spot. South Dakota State was picked first with 558 points and 34 first-place votes, while Oral Roberts closed out the top three with 410 points in third place.
 
All-SUMMIT LEAGUE PRESEASON TEAM
Avery Koenen and Jocelyn Schiller were selected to the All-Summit League Preseason First Team, while Marisa Frost was named to the All-Summit League Preseason Second Team. Koenen averaged 17.0 points and 8.1 rebounds per game in Summit League play last season. On the defensive end, she was slotted third in league play with 17 total blocks. Schiller was named the Summit League Freshman of the Year and earned a spot on the All-Summit League Freshman Team last season at North Dakota. She averaged 13.2 points with 4.1 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game for the Fighting Hawks. Frost averaged 28.8 minutes per game to go along with 10.1 points per game. Her 10.1 points per game ranked third on the team in Summit League play and she reached double figures in nine games.
 
KOENEN ON PRESEASON WATCH LIST FOR MID-MAJOR PLAYER OF THE YEAR AWARD
Avery Koenen was named to the preseason watch list for the 2026 Becky Hammon Mid-Major Player of the Year Award this season. Koenen becomes the first player in Bison history to earn a spot on the 25-player preseason watch list. She's also one of only two players in the Summit League to earn the preseason recognition, joining Brooklyn Meyer from South Dakota State.
 
COLLEGE INSIDER MID-MAJOR TOP 25 POLL
The Bison begin the season receiving votes in the College Insider Mid-Major Top 25 Poll after garnering 72 total votes. NDSU received votes in the poll three times last season and hasn't been ranked since the 2023 at No. 25. The Bison will face three teams this season in featured in the preseason poll: South Dakota State (No. 1), Gonzaga (No. 7) and Montana State (No. 15).
 
ANOTHER 20-WIN SEASON
The Bison have reached the 20-win mark each of the last two seasons after posting a 21-12 overall record last season. It marked the first time NDSU has assembled back-to-back 20-win seasons under head coach Jory Collins and first since posting three straight from 2002-05.
 
BATTLE TESTED
Following its third straight appearance in the WNIT last season, NDSU has played extended seasons deep into March. The Bison played a combined 33 games last season, tied for the second-longest season in program history. After recording the longest season in program history in 2023-24 with 34 total games, NDSU has combined to play a total of 77 games over the last two seasons. NDSU boasts a 43-24 record over that span.
 
SCHEDULE TIDBITS
The Bison are set to play 29 total regular season games with 13 games inside the Scheels Center at the Sanford Health Athletic Complex. NDSU will play 13 non-conference contests and will face five opponents that participated in a postseason tournament last season, including Northern Iowa, Gonzaga, Nebraska, Campbell and Montana State. NDSU will open the 16-game Summit League schedule at Oral Roberts on Jan. 1.
 
OUR HOUSE
NDSU posted a 13-3 record inside Scheels Center last season. The Bison have won at least 13 home games in back-to-back seasons for the first time since assembling a streak of 11 straight from 1994-05. NDSU is a combined 37-5 over the last three seasons at Scheels Center, including a 13-1 mark in 2023-24.
 
THE HEAD COACH
Head coach Jory Collins enters his seventh season at NDSU and has led the Bison to back-to-back 20-win seasons. He begins the season just two wins away from the 100-win mark with a 98-82 overall record. His 98 wins at NDSU rank as the second-most in Bison history behind Amy Ruley (671 wins). Collins is also approaching his 300th career win with a 297-140 overall record, which includes eight seasons at Emporia State from 2010-18. Collins is the second-longest tenured coach in the Summit League in his seventh season.
 
Under Collins, the Bison made their first-ever appearance in the Summit League Championship game in 2024 and three straight appearances in WNIT. NDSU has also had at least one All-Summit League First Team and an All-Summit League Freshman Team selection each of the last two seasons.
 
RETURNING ALL-SUMMIT LEAGUE PLAYERS
NDSU returns three All-Summit League selections this season. Avery Koenen was selected to the All-Summit League First Team for the first time in her career last season. Molly Lenz earned a spot on the Summit League All-Newcomer Team and Marisa Frost was tabbed to the Summit League All-Freshman Team.
 
SCHILLER JOINS THE BISON
After spending her freshman season at North Dakota, Jocelyn Schiller transferred to NDSU last spring. She was named the Summit League Freshman of the Year and earned a spot on the All-Summit League Freshman Team last season. She averaged 13.2 points with 4.1 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game for the Fighting Hawks. Schiller started all 31 games and led all freshmen in the Summit League with a team-high 89 assists and team-best 40 steals. She also averaged 16.3 points per game in Summit League play, which led all freshmen.
 
FRESH FACES IN FARGO
NDSU welcomed three transfers to the roster over offseason with additions of Jocelyn Schiller, Lily Niebuhr and Audrey Martinez-Stewart. Niebuhr appeared in 55 games over three seasons at Indiana State after taking a medical redshirt last season. Martinez-Stewart started all 57 games she appeared in over two seasons at Missouri-St. Louis.
 
YOUNG BISON
The Bison added three freshman to the roster with the addition of Sophie Hawkinson, McKenna Johnson and Karrington Asp. Hawkinson was the as the ninth-ranked prospect in Minnesota according to Prep Girls Hoops, while Johnson was the second-ranked prospect in North Dakota according to Prep Girls Hoops. Asp enters her redshirt freshman season after joining the Bison last January as an early enrollee.
 
STERN ANNOUNCES MEDICAL RETIREMENT
Claire Stern announced in September that she will no longer pursue playing career for the Bison and will medically retire from basketball. Stern appeared in 32 games off the bench and logged 13.7 minutes per game in her freshman season.
 
BISON OFFENSIVE NOTES FROM LAST SEASON
- The NDSU bench provided 23.9 points per game last season, which ranked second in the Summit League and 32nd in the nation.
- The Bison led the Summit League and ranked 16th in the nation with 15.21 free throws made per game.
- NDSU has recorded four of the top 10 seasons in program history under head coach Jory Collins from three and have netted at least 190 three-pointers each of the last four seasons, including the second-most in program history with 246 in 2023-24.
 
BISON DEFENSIVE NOTES FROM LAST SEASON
- NDSU limited opponents to a 28.2 three-point percentage last season, which led the Summit League and ranked 40th in the nation. That mark was the fifth-lowest in program history.
- The Bison only allowed 135 opponent three-pointers last season, the seventh-lowest mark in the nation.
- NDSU limited opponents to 31.6 rebounds per game last season, the lowest total in program history.
 
UP NEXT
NDSU will open its home schedule hosting Gonzaga on Friday, Nov. 7. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m., at Scheels Center.