The University of Minnesota Duluth men's basketball team is set to face Augustana University in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) Tournament Semifinals. Tipoff is set for 7:00 p.m. Monday inside the Sanford Pentagon.

SECOND NSIC NORTH DIVISION CHAMPIONS: With a 13-9 record, the Bulldogs clinched the NSIC North Division title after their 85-72 victory over Minnesota State University Moorhead. This marked the program's second title since its first in the 2021-22 season.

BULLDOGS AND THE NSIC TOURNAMENT: Under head coach Wiecks' leadership, the Bulldogs now have a 10-5 record since the 2018-19 season. The 2021-22 season was the last time the program earned the North Division title, which saw them advance all the way to the championship, falling 81-73 to Minnesota State University Moorhead.
 
ALL-CONFERENCE CLUB: Kole Hanson and Noah Paulson of the University of Minnesota Duluth men's basketball team have earned selections to the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) All-Conference teams.
 
Sophomore guard from Prior Lake, Minn., Hanson earns his first selection to the All-Conference First Team. In a career season, he is on track to average 15.2 points, 1.2 steals, 1.5 assists, and 2.2 rebounds per game. Currently, he holds or is tied for multiple of the team's season single-game highs, including field goals (12 of 22 vs. St. Cloud), three-pointers (5 of 9 vs. CSP), free throws (12 of 15 vs. Minnesota Crookston), and steals (4 vs. Minot/CSP). Ahead of the upcoming NSIC Tournament Quarterfinals, he has tallied 410 points, 32 steals, two blocks, 40 assists, and 60 rebounds.
 
Duluth native and redshirt senior, Paulson, is selected to his first All-Conference Second Team list. Ahead of the upcoming NSIC Tournament Quarterfinals, he is on pace to average 12.7 points, 1.0 steals, and five rebounds per game. This season, he is tied for the team's best single-game performance in steals (4) and blocked shots (3). Currently, he has 368 points, 30 steals, 21 blocks, 52 assists, and 144 rebounds.
 
COACH WIECK'S 8TH SEASON: Head Coach Justin Wieck enters his eighth season at the helm of UMD men's basketball. Since taking over the program in 2018, he has led the team to three NCAA II Tournament berths, all of which happened back-to-back, with one going all the way to the Elite Eight in the 2023-24 season. Wieck has an overall record of 142-58 with 99-43 in conference play.
 
HANSON HEATING UP: Kole has 11 double-digit games in the past 12 outings of the regular season. He tallied a career high 32 points against St. Cloud State to go along with 22 points against Minnesota State Mankato, 16 against Winona State, 28 against Concordia-St. Paul, 13 against Wayne State, 28 against Augustana, 14 against UMary, 23 against Minot State, 15 against Northern State, 18 against Minnesota Crookston, and 12 against MSUM.
 
SIWEK ON THE RISE: After being chosen as the NSIC's Player to Watch for the Bulldogs, redshirt junior Caleb Siwek has gotten off to the best start in his career. He earned six straight games in the double-digit points category to start the season with 34 points on opening day against East Central, 20 points against Southeastern Oklahoma,  21 points against St. Scholastica, 12 points against Michigan Tech, 22 points against Lake Superior State, and 23 points against Bemidji State. He also finished the season on a hot streak, earning 19 points against Minnesota Crookston and 25 points against MSUM in the final week.
 
A COLOSSAL OUTING FOR PAULSON: In a narrow loss to the conference newcomer, the University of Jamestown, Noah Paulson earned 28 points of the team's 70 while shooting 61.5% (8-13) from the field, 91.7% (11-12) in free throws, and making his only three-pointer for his best outing so far.
 
NSIC LEADERS: The Bulldogs, as a unit, are the third best in scoring defense (71.8 avg/g) in the NSIC, second in scoring margin (6.5), fourth in opponent field goals (43.5%), third in rebounding margin (2.7), first in combined opponent rebounds (32.9), and first in turnover margin (2.52). Individually, Kole Hanson ranks fifth in free throws (86.5%)
 
EARLIER IN THE QUARTERFINALS: UMD 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.
 
SCOUTING THE VIKINGS: UMD will have to defend against the NSIC's South Division Player of the Year, Tameron Ferguson. He is averaging 20.2 points, 1.5 steals, 6.5 assists, and 5.1 rebounds per game while shooting 52.8% from the field, 36.2% beyond the arc, and 69.6% from the free throw line.
 
EARLIER AGAINST AU: UMD was dealt its second loss in a row by Augustana University in 96-84 fashion inside the Elmen Center Saturday.
 
Leading the effort for the Bulldogs were both Kole Hanson and Caleb Siwek with over 20 points each. Hanson tallied his 28-point game of the season along with one steal and four assists. He shot 56.3% 99-16) from the field, 20% (1-5) beyond the arc, and 90% (9-10) from the free throw line. Siwek followed with 25 points while earning a steal, three rebounds, and hitting 50% (9-18) from the field and 62.5% (5-8) beyond the arc.
 
Entering the first half, the Vikings scored first with two three-pointers in the first two minutes. The Bulldogs responded with a 13-10 scoring run, which was led by Hanson's nine points. By the 10-minute mark, AU held a 24-18 lead over UMD until the Bulldogs climbed back in on a 16-7 scoring run in the next seven minutes by the efforts of Nick Katona (7), Siwek (3), Jackson Fowlkes (2), Mattie Thompson (2), and Hanson (2).
 
The Bulldogs held on to a 41-37 lead at halftime with Katona and Siwek scoring the final seven points before the break. The Vikings opened the second half on a 15-11 run to tie the game back up in the first eight minutes at 52-52, overpowering Siwek's nine-point effort. UMD held on to a narrow lead in the next four minutes as Hanson's 11 points and Noah Paulson's two looked to hold off AU.
 
The Vikings broke past the Bulldog defense on a 15-6 scoring run in under four minutes of game time for a 79-71 lead. With five minutes remaining, AU held off UMD on a 17-13 run to close out the game at 96-84.
 
The Bulldogs fell victim to the Vikings 70.37% (19-27) accuracy from the field and 70% (7-10) beyond the arc in the second half, while only hitting 43.75% (13-32) from the field and 41.67% (5-12) beyond the arc in return.