NDSCS Men Earn No. 2 Seed in Region XIII Tournament

North Dakota State College of Science earned the No. 2 seed in the Region XIII Tournament after an 11-3 run through the Mon-Dak Conference regular season slate. NDSCS will receive a first-round bye in this week’s tournament hosted in Glendive, Montana.

The Wildcats posted a 25-5 record, giving the program nine straight 25-win seasons. Eight of those have come under the watch of Stu Engen, who has never won fewer than 26 games or lost more than six games in a single season since taking over the program.

Engen surpassed the 500-win plateau back in November. More than 200 have come at NDSCS, where he’s 115-17 at Ed Werre Arena.

It has been another balanced season for the Cats, who have shaken off several key injuries, with eight players averaging at least eight points per game, led by sophomore Duoth Gach (15.2) and freshman Khari Broadway (14.2).

Sophomore Uhana Ochan and redshirt freshman Diang Gatluak tied for the team-lead in rebounding (5.4) and Mohamed Kone led the squad in assists (4.3) and assists-to-turnover ratio (2.2).

Gach, a returning All-American, was even better in conference play after getting healthy. The 6-foot-5 guard was among the Mon-Dak Conference’s leaders in several categories, finishing second in scoring (21.4). He led the league in 3-point FG percentage (49.6) and tied for second in 3-point FG made (62).

The Cats finished 26^th nationally in scoring (90.8) and 21^st in offensive rebounding (15.3).

NDSCS earned a first-round bye in the Region XIII Tournament and will play the winner between No. 3 Miles CC and No. 6 Lake Region State on Friday, Feb. 28, at 7:30 p.m. in Glendive. The Region XIII championship is set for Saturday, Feb. 29, at 6 p.m. with the winner visiting the Region XI winner on Saturday, March 5, with a trip to the NJCAA National Tournament in Hutchinson, Kan. at stake.