Who's Playing

North Dakota @ Denver

Current Records: North Dakota 6-12; Denver 10-9

What to Know

The Denver Pioneers won both of their matches against the North Dakota Fighting Hawks last season (93-74 and 81-79) and are aiming for the same result Saturday. Denver and North Dakota will face off in a Summit battle at 3 p.m. ET at Hamilton Gymnasium. Given that both teams suffered a loss in their last game, they both have a little extra motivation heading into this contest.

The Pioneers found themselves the reluctant recipients of an unpleasant 90-70 punch to the gut against the North Dakota State Bison on Thursday.

Meanwhile, North Dakota was within striking distance but couldn't close the gap on Thursday as they fell 69-63 to the Nebraska Omaha Mavericks.

Denver is the favorite in this one, with an expected 4.5-point margin of victory. They have failed bettors playing the spread in their past five games, so buyers beware.

The losses put Denver at 10-9 and the Fighting Hawks at 6-12. A couple numbers to keep in mind before tip-off: The Pioneers are stumbling into the game with the eighth most turnovers per game in college basketball, having accrued 15.4 on average. North Dakota has experienced some struggles of their own as they are 35th worst in college basketball in takeaways, with only 11.4 on average. It's possible one of these Achilles' heels will wind up tripping the losing team up.

How To Watch

  • When: Saturday at 3 p.m. ET
  • Where: Hamilton Gymnasium -- Denver, Colorado
  • Follow: CBS Sports App

Odds

The Pioneers are a 4.5-point favorite against the Fighting Hawks, according to the latest college basketball odds.

The oddsmakers had a good feel for the line for this one, as the game opened with the Pioneers as a 5-point favorite.

Over/Under: -112

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Series History

North Dakota have won five out of their last eight games against Denver.

  • Feb 03, 2022 - Denver 81 vs. North Dakota 79
  • Jan 08, 2022 - Denver 93 vs. North Dakota 74
  • Feb 06, 2021 - Denver 85 vs. North Dakota 81
  • Feb 05, 2021 - North Dakota 85 vs. Denver 82
  • Jan 23, 2020 - North Dakota 78 vs. Denver 71
  • Jan 02, 2020 - North Dakota 82 vs. Denver 71
  • Feb 23, 2019 - North Dakota 81 vs. Denver 63
  • Jan 05, 2019 - North Dakota 80 vs. Denver 59