January 15, 2026

THIS WEEK'S PREVIEW
MADISON, S.D. - The Dakota State University Trojan men's basketball team (13-3 overall record, 8-3 Frontier Conference) returns home this weekend for the first time since Dec. 6.  The Trojans play their first home games of the 2026 calendar year at DSU Fieldhouse (1302 N. Washington Ave.).

The Trojans host Montana Tech (14-3 overall record, 8-3 Frontier Conference, No. 15 ranking in the NAIA national poll) Friday evening.  The contest is also the 7th annual Ag Ball contest, starting with the meals at 4 p.m.  The men's game tips off at 7 p.m., or approximately 20-25 minutes after the completion of the 5 p.m. women's game.

DSU hosts Montana Western (14-3 overall record, 9-2 Frontier Conference, receiving votes in the national poll) Saturday evening at 7 p.m.

This weekend marks the second half of the Frontier Conference schedule, with 11 league contests remaining on their regular season schedule before the postseason tournament in late February and early March in Butte, Mont.

QUICK HITS
*Dakota State returns home this weekend for the first time since Dec. 6, 2025, a span of 41 days in between home games.  The Trojans return to DSU Fieldhouse after their eight-game road trip, including six Frontier Conference games and two exhibition games.

*DSU and No. 15 ranked Montana Tech are tied for fifth in the Frontier Conference standings with an 8-3 record each.  Bellevue (Neb.), Rocky Mountain (Mont.), and (RV) Montana Western are tied for second with 9-2 record, while (RV) Carroll (Mont.) leads the conference with 10-1 record.

*This weekend starts the second half portion of the Frontier basketball schedule, with each member with 11 league games remaining before the postseason tournament in Butte, Mont., in late February and early March.

*Entering this weekend's contests, Dakota State is 7-0 record at home, matching last year's home wins total.

*The Trojans had reached their most conference wins (8 conference wins) for the first time since 2016-17 (in the former North Star Athletic Association).
 

Scoring Offense	80.2	76.1	83.8
Scoring Defense	68.4	61.3	75.9
Scoring Margin	11.8	14.8	7.9
Field Goal %	.512	.493	.467
Field Goal Def. %	.406	.406	.456
Free Throw %	.686	.700	.696
Rebounds Per Game	36.9	36.7	37.6
Rebounds Margin	6.2	8.5	3.6
3-point FGs Made Per Game	6.6	7.4	9.7
3-point FG %	.360	.382	.381
Assists Per Game	12.3	14.4	13.9
Blocks Per Game	3.8	2.1	4.1

SCOUTING THE OREDIGGERS
Adam Hiatt is in his ninth season as Montana Tech men's basketball coach.  He as built the Orediggers into one of the premier college basketball programs in the NAIA.  He was named to the Frontier Coach of the Year for three consecutive seasons, where he took his squads to four straight Frontier Conference regular season championships as well as four consecutive NAIA national tournament appearance.    

The Orediggers, based in Butte, Mont., enter this weekend contests with an overall record of 14-3 and 8-3 record in the Frontier Conference.  MT is tied with Dakota State for fifth place in the conference standings.

Montana Tech kicked off their 2025-26 season by winning eight straight games before suffering three consecutive losses in the Frontier Conference.  The Orediggers began their league play with a sweep over Mayville State (N.D.) and Valley City State (N.D.) before losing three straight conference games at home to Montana Western, (RV) Rocky Mountain (Mont.), and Carroll (Mont.).

The Orediggers extended their winning streak to six games after defeating Providence (Mont.) and MSU-Northern last weekend at home.  

Dakota State and Montana Tech will be playing for the first time in the all-time series on Friday.  Both teams will play their second Frontier Conference meeting in Butte on Feb. 14.

SCOUTING THE BULLDOGS
Montana Western, based in Dillon, Mont., is guided by third-year head coach Patrick Jensen where he was the head coach since the 2023-24 season.  He was a former UMW assistant coach under former Dakota State's alum, men's basketball athlete, and assistant coach Mike Larsen, starting in 2018-19 season.    

Montana Western enters this weekend's contests with 14-3 overall record and 9-2 record in the Frontier Conference.  The Bulldogs are tied for second in the league with Bellevue (Neb.) and (RV) Rocky Mountain (Mont.).  UMW travels to Bellevue before coming to Dakota State on Saturday evening.

Montana Western began their season with three straight wins, highlighted by a pair of NAIA's Top 25 teams.  The Bulldogs defeated then No. 14 Southern Oregon 85-65, followed by a 96-73 victory over then No. 1 ranked College of Idaho 96-79, both games held in Dillon.  

UMW began the expanded Frontier Conference with three straight victories before falling to Carroll (Mont.) on Dec. 5. and Rocky Mountain (Mont.) on Dec. 6.   

Since then, Montana Western had won six straight Frontier Conference games including a weekend sweep over MSU-Northern and Providence at home last weekend.

Dakota State and Montana Western faced each other for the first time in the Thanksgiving Classic, hosted by Dickinson (N.D.) on Nov. 26, 2022.  After 33-33 halftime tie, the Trojans used a 49-35 second half surge to defeat the Bulldogs 82-68.  

LAST TIME OUT
Dakota State concluded their season-long eight straight road games - six games in the Frontier Conference and two exhibition games against NCAA Division I's Summit League members - with a pair of victories last weekend in North Dakota.  The Trojans concluded their Frontier Conference's season-high six-game road stretch with a 4-2 record.

Dakota State traveled to BSC Armory for their first ever meeting with Bismarck State (N.D.) on Jan. 9.  The Trojans controlled both halves to roll to a 71-55 Frontier Conference win over the Mystics, thanks to their 50.8 percent field goal shooting (30-of-59 field goals.  DSU led 33-21 by halftime and led as many as 26 points in the second half to earn a 16-point victory.  

Eleven different DSU players scored in the game.  Aiden Jensen paced a balanced offensive attack with 13 points, while Nathan Ojukwu added 12 points.  Tyler Beckwith chipped in 11 points.  Ryan Beckwith scored eight points.  Brayden Pankonen contributed six points and four assists.  Taine Mitchell pulled down nine rebounds to go with his five points.  Nolan Segner scored six points off the bench.

Dakota State closed out their road trip by holding off host-team Dickinson State (N.D.) 78-74 on Jan. 10 at Scott Gymnasium.  Nathan Ojukwu and Lukas Morgan each had a career night, scoring a combined 63 points in the game for the Trojans.  

DSU held a slim 32-29 halftime lead.  The Trojans' lead grew as many as 10 points in the late second half before the Blue Hawks rallied back in the closing minutes.  Dickinson State could get no closer than two points as R. Beckwith nailed down two free throws in the final seconds to secure the win for Dakota State.

Ojukwu scored 37 points in the game on his 11-of-21 from the field, 6-of-11 from the 3-point line, and 9-of-10 from the free-throw line for the Trojans.  He posted a double-double with 11 rebounds.  Morgan provided a huge spark off the bench, scoring 26 points on 8-of-14 field goals with three triples, while knocking down 7-of-9 free-throws.

In addition to Ojuwku and Morgan, Pankonen scored seven points, while T. Beckwith added four points.  Mitchell grabbed seven rebounds.  Dakota State shot 45.8 percent from the field (22-of-48 field goals), 9-of-19 from the 3-point line (47.4 percent), and converted 25-of-30 free-throws (83.3 percent).

A LOOK BACK TO MOST SINGLE-SEASON CONFERENCE VICTORIES
After Dakota State's 78-74 victory at Dickinson State on Jan. 10, it marked the eighth conference win of the season in the inaugural and expanded Frontier Conference.  The last time the Trojans reached eight conference wins in a single season was during the 2016-17 season when they finished with an 8-8 conference record in the former North Star Athletic Association.  

The year prior to 2016-17, Dakota State recorded ten (10) conference wins in the NSAA conference, thanks to their regular season closing with six consecutive wins in the NSAA contests before the postseason tournament.  The Trojans then went on to win three straight games in the postseason tournament as a No. 3 seed, winning all games at home at DSU Fieldhouse before falling short to No. 1 ranked Saint Francis (Ind.) 96-81 in the opening round in Point Lookout, Mo.

The Trojans are seeking their first winning record in the conference play since the 2015-16 season.  

TROJANS AT HOME
Dakota State is 7-0 record at home this season at DSU Fieldhouse, including 4-0 home record in the Frontier Conference with wins over Providence (Mont.), MSU-Northern, Mayville State (N.D.), and Valley City State (N.D.).   

DSU is averaging 82.9 points per game on their home court this season, thanks to their 51 percent shooting from the field (214-of-420 field goals) and 63-of-149 from the 3-point line (42.3 percent).  

Dakota State is holding their opponents to 57.9 points per game during seven DSU's home games.  The Trojans held their opponents to 37.7 percent from the field (148-of-393 field goals) and 44-of-161 from the 3-point line (27.3 percent).  

DSU is looking to clinch a home winning record this season as they have seven remaining games at DSU Fieldhouse this season, including a pair of games this weekend.  After this weekend's games, Dakota State hosts Bellevue (Neb.), Rocky Mountain (Mont.), Carroll (Mont.), Dickinson State (N.D.) and Bismarck State (N.D.) to close out their home schedule.

DAKOTA STATE IN THE FRONTIER CONFERENCE RANKS
According to the NAIA-PrestoStats as of Thursday, Dakota State leads the Frontier Conference in overall defense scoring.  The Trojans limited their opponents to 61.3 points per game overall.  DSU is also second in the league with 63.8 points allowed during the conference season.

Nathan Ojukwu leads the Frontier Conference in rebounds, averaging 8.5 rebounds per game before this weekend's games.  He is also third in the league in scoring, averaging 19.4 points per game.       

Desman Botts ranks fourth in the Frontier Conference in field goal percentage of 65.2 percent.  Brayden Pankonen ties for second most steals in the conference with 33 steals (Lorence Dela Cruz of Carroll, Mont.).   

2025-26 DSU Trojan Men's Basketball Team Leaders

• Points/Points Per Game: Nathan Ojukwu – 310 points (19.4 points per game)
• Field Goal Percentage: Desman Botts – 65.2 percent (45-of-69 field goals)
• 3-point Field Goal Percentage: Ryan Beckwith – 41.7 percent (20-of-48 3-point field goals)
• Free-Throw Percentage: Brayden Pankonen – 80.0 percent (28-of-35 free-throws)
• Rebounds: Nathan Ojukwu – 136 rebounds (8.5 rebounds per game)
• Assists/Assists Per Game: Nathan Ojukwu – 48 assists/3.0 assists per game
• Steals/Steals Per Game: Brayden Pankonen – 33 steals/2.1 steals per game
• Blocked Shots: Aiden Jensen – 13 blocked shots (0.8 blocks per game)