The University of Minnesota Duluth men's basketball team outlasted Concordia University St. Paul to earn their first entry into the NSIC Tournament Semifinals since the 2023-24 season.

"They came at us in the second half, but I thought our guys just did a great job of staying in the moment," said head coach Justin Wieck. "This team has been through a lot. We've lost a ton of close games throughout the year, but we've won two in a row now when it really matters."

Out of the gates, UMD fell behind 8-3 in the first four minutes as Kole Hanson's three-pointer was the only Bulldog score. The Bulldogs wouldn't tie the game for the first time until the 10-minute mark after a 14-9 scoring run from Noah Paulson (4), Caleb Siwek (3), Mattie Thompson (3), Wyatt McBeth (2), and Jackson Fowlkes (2).

The Golden Bears were able to hold the Bulldogs from taking the lead until 5:07 remained, when Hanson put up UMD's first lead of the day at 24-23. The lead wasn't permanent as CSP retook the lead and held a tie until under two minutes remained when Siwek put away a pair of free throws. Nick Katona followed him up with a three-pointer to force a 40-36 lead into the halftime break.

UMD had let up the lead coming out of halftime, but kept the Golden Bears within two points in the first five minutes. At 13:31, the Bulldogs were looking at an eight-point gap as CSP pushed a 55-47 lead.

"I thought our guys just did a great job of getting deflections, sticking with the game plan for the most part," said Wieck. "At this time of the year, it's one shot here, and one possession there. Then we finally stepped up and made some big free throws down the stretch."

It took until five minutes remained as the Bulldogs crept within four points at 68-64. After a layup from Siwek, Katona hit a well-timed three-pointer to cut the lead down to 70-89 with 2:28 left. Paulson followed up with a layup to push UMD ahead for the duration as four free throws from Hanson forced a 75-71 victory over the Golden Bears.

Overall, UMD hit 41.9% (26-62) from the field, 36.4% (8-22) beyond the arc, and lifted a 73.3% (11-15) in the second half to help seal the victory. 17 points off turnovers to CSP's seven helped UMD over the top. The Golden Bears also lost the rebounding battle to the Bulldogs in 41-31 fashion.

UMD was led by Hanson with 16 points, hitting 44.4% (4-9) from the field, 50% (2-4) beyond the arc, and 100% (6-6) from the free throw line. Following close behind was Siwek and Thompson with 13 points and two steals each.

The Bulldogs now look towards the NSIC Tournament Semifinals tomorrow. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. against Augustana University inside the Sanford Pentagon.