How to Watch No. 15 Nebraska Basketball vs. North Dakota with Preview, Breakdown, TV Channel

With the sports calendar moving to December, there's been too much heartbreak for Nebraska fans amidst the buildup to the holiday season. Nebraska volleyball's gut-wrenching, season-ending loss to Texas A&M, plus another turbulent offseason for the Husker football team, hasn't served up many smiles. But in an unexpected twist, it's the Nebraska men's basketball team and Fred Hoiberg leading with the torch heading into the cold Midwest winter months.

Hoiberg has constructed a roster good enough to record the best start in program history — stamped by taking down No. 13 Illinois on the road, a team that had won eight of the last nine contests in the series. The one Iowa transfer who's matched their offseason hype, Pryce Sandfort erupted for 26 of his game-high 32 points in the first half, but it hardly mattered in what was a 14-point comeback for the Illini to tie things up at 37 entering the half.

Deadlocked at 80 apiece following Ivisic Tomislav's game-tying three with 17 seconds left, Sam Hoiberg executed a hand-off to Jamarques Lawrence, who played hero with a game-winning three-pointer to deliver Nebraska's program record 11th straight win. With a home date against Michigan State looming on January 2, the Huskers turn their attention to their last two non-conference games.

Here's all you need to know as NU hosts North Dakota for its first game in eight days.

How to Follow Along

Matchup: Nebraska (11-0, 2-0 B1G) vs. North Dakota (5-9, 0-0 Summit League).
When: Sunday, December 21.
Where: Pinnacle Bank Arena, Lincoln, Neb.
Time: 7 p.m. CST
Watch: Big Ten Network.
Listen: Huskers Radio Network and Affiliates.

North Dakota Scout

Head Coach

Paul Sather | 7th season at North Dakota; 21st as HC.
78-124 (.386) at PSU; 360-275 (.567) Career Record.
NCAA DII Runner-up, 3x NCAA DII Tournament Apps., NAIA Final Four.
2x NSIC Tournament & Regular Season, 2x DAC.
2x NSIC Coach OTY.
Previous head coach at Northern State and Black Hills.
Previous assistant at Northern State.

2025 Record & Awards

12-21 (5-11 Summit League, 6th).
Summit League: 1x Second Team, 1x Honorable Mention, 1x All-Defensive.

All-Time Series

Nebraska leads 42.
Dec. 20, 2023, last matchup, 83-75 NU.

After redshirting for his first college season, Greyson Uelmen leads North Dakota with over 13 points per game. | North Dakota Athletics

Key Returners

Greyson Uelmen | G | R-Fr. | The Fighting Hawks' leading scorer with 13.2 points per game after redshirting during his first season in Grand Forks.
Eli King | G | Sr. | Returning starter for the Fighting Hawks, who's second on the team in scoring (10.0) and leads the Fighting Hawks in rebounds (5.1) and steals with 35.
Zach Kraft | G | R-Soph. | 30-game reserve last season and now is ND's most lethal sharpshooter with a 29-for-74 mark from three.
George Natsvlishvili | F | Jr. | 6-foot-10 returning reserve that's grown to produce 8.2 points and 4.8 rebounds per game as a junior.

Key Departures

Treysen Eaglestaff | G | Transfer | Now at West Virginia and the Big 12 after making the All-Summit League Second Team with 18.9 PPG and 84 three-pointers.
Mier Panoam | G | Transfer | Second on the Fighting Hawks with 13 points per game and nearly rebounds as a sophomore before transferring to Xavier during the offseason.
Amar Kuljuhovic | G | Transfer | Transferred to Missouri State after being named to the 2024 Summit League All-Newcomer team with a team-leading 6.8 rebounds per game.
Dariyus Woodson | F | Transfer | Most impactful reserve last season for ND with 8.5 points off the bench, but transferred to Louisiana over the offseason.
Deng Mayer | F | Transfer | Made his way to fellow Summit League program Omaha after starting 10 of 29 games with 6.3 PPG and 4.0 RPG for ND last season.

An All-Summit League Second Team pick last season, Treysen Eaglestaff landed at West Virginia over the offseason. | North Dakota Athletics

Impact Transfers/Newcomers

Garrett Anderson | G | Sr. | Transfer from Central Washington and San Jose State, who's adding 9.4 PPG and 4.2 RPG in starting 12 of his first 13 games in a Fighting Hawks uniform.
Marley Curtis | F | Fr. | Minnesota native who's made a start in eight of his 13 appearances while averaging 8.4 points and 4.3 rebounds.
Anthony Smith III | G | Fr. | Another freshman from Minnesota making an impact in year one with 7.8 points per game in nearly 20 minutes per night.

Outlook

A proven national title contender in the NAIA and Division II ranks, North Dakota head coach Paul Sather has grinded out some good talent in a low-major Summit League that's typically kicked around in non-conference and postseason play. Despite a frustrating 12-21 campaign in 2024-2025, the Fighting Hawks saw five of its top six scorers depart campus, with four of those moving up to a better conference.

That starts with guard Treysen Eaglestaff, who parlayed his All-Summit League Second Team honor into a role at West Virginia. Mier Panoam (Xavier) and Amar Kulijuhovic (Missouri State) also left after averaging double figures. A key reserve with 8.5 PPG, Dariyus Woodson transferred to Louisiana and Deng Mayer moved to Omaha to play for the Summit League-foe Mavericks.

This year's core is led by redshirt freshman Greyson Uelmen (13.2 PPG), who redshirted for his first season in Grand Forks. Senior guard Eli King was the lone starter to return for 2025-2026, and he's second on the team with 10 points per game and leads the Fighting Hawks with 5.1 rebounds per contest. Plus, 6-foot-10 returning forward George Natsvlishvili anchors the paint with 8.2 PPG and 4.8 RPG.

Central Washington transfer Garrett Anderson has been the Fighting Hawks most impactful newcomer with 9.4 PPG. | North Dakota Athletics

A transfer from Central Washington and San Jose State, senior guard Garrett Anderson adds 9.4 PPG while Minnesota freshman Marley Curtis (8.4 PPG, 4.3 RPG) and Anthony Smith III (7.8 PPG) each add decent scoring strokes to the ND bench.

Projected to finish eighth of the nine teams in the Summit League, North Dakota will have a tall task in upsetting the red-host Huskers. Nebraska may start out slow after an eight-day break, but NU should extend its record-winning streak to 12 games.

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