FARGO, N.D. (Interstat) — In a game that defied pregame projections and required two extra periods to decide, North Dakota State survived a monumental upset bid by Oral Roberts, escaping with a 79-77 victory in a Summit League men’s basketball thriller Saturday at Scheels Center.

The Bison, heavy favorites entering the contest, needed a last-second putback from Noah Feddersen at the final horn of the second overtime to finally subdue the resilient Golden Eagles before a crowd of 1,714.

Oral Roberts, which entered the game with a 5-11 record and was given only a 5% chance to win by advanced metrics, led for much of regulation and had multiple opportunities to secure the road win. The Golden Eagles built a five-point halftime lead, 37-32, behind an efficient first half from Yuto Yamanouchi-Williams and Ofri Naveh. North Dakota State, however, chipped away in the second half, leveraging a significant advantage on the offensive glass and trips to the free-throw line to stay close despite cold shooting.

The end of regulation was a tense back-and-forth. Oral Roberts held a 57-56 lead in the final minute after two Ofri Naveh free throws. North Dakota State’s Damari Wheeler-Thomas was fouled with seven seconds left and calmly sank both free throws to put the Bison up by one. On the ensuing possession, Oral Roberts’ Connor Dow was fouled on a three-point attempt with 3.5 seconds remaining. Dow made the first two free throws to give the Golden Eagles a 59-58 lead but missed the third, sending the game to overtime tied after a frantic final sequence.

The first overtime saw both teams score 11 points. Oral Roberts took a 68-66 lead on a Jack Turner tip-in with nine seconds left, but Trevian Carson answered for North Dakota State with a clutch jumper to force a second overtime at 68-68.

Fatigue and attrition set in during the second extra period. North Dakota State built a 75-72 lead, but Oral Roberts’ Dow nailed a deep three-pointer off a Cal Furnish assist with 27 seconds left to tie the game at 77. After a timeout, the Bison worked for a final shot. Markhi Strickland’s jumper missed, but Feddersen, positioned perfectly on the weak side, grabbed the offensive rebound and laid it in as time expired for the winning points.

The final play underscored the game’s defining statistical disparity: North Dakota State’s dominance on the boards. The Bison grabbed 21 offensive rebounds, leading to 19 second-chance points and a 34-28 advantage in points in the paint. This compensated for a poor shooting afternoon from the floor, where both teams struggled, with North Dakota State shooting 38.8% and Oral Roberts 39.7%. The Bison attempted 31 free throws, making 19, while Oral Roberts was a more efficient 11 of 13 from the line.

Yamanouchi-Williams led all scorers for Oral Roberts with 19 points, adding two blocks. Connor Dow scored 15 points, and Ofri Naveh added 14. The Golden Eagles dished out eight assists to just five for the Bison and forced 15 turnovers.

For North Dakota State, balance was key. Markhi Strickland and Damari Wheeler-Thomas each scored 15 points, with Wheeler-Thomas playing a game-high 46 minutes. Trevian Carson added 14 points and four assists, while Tay Smith provided a spark off the bench with nine points, all from three-point range.

The loss extended Oral Roberts’ recent skid to three games, dropping their record to 5-12 overall and 0-2 in the Summit League. The Golden Eagles have lost six of their last seven games. North Dakota State improved to 12-5 overall and 2-0 in conference play, winning their fourth consecutive game.

The two teams are scheduled to meet again in Tulsa on Jan. 24.

The most critical phase of the game was the final sequence of the second overtime. With the score tied at 77 and under 10 seconds to play, North Dakota State’s execution after a timeout was imperfect but effective. They generated a decent look for leading scorer Markhi Strickland, whose miss was not cleaned up by Oral Roberts’ defense. Noah Feddersen’s game-winning tip-in at the buzzer was the direct and decisive result of North Dakota State’s relentless offensive rebounding effort, which was the single most persistent factor throughout the entire 50-minute contest. That final effort on the glass turned a potential third overtime into a dramatic walk-off victory for the Bison.