February 28, 2026
BUTTE, Mont. – Sixth-seeded Dakota State (S.D.) battled back-and-forth with third-seeded Carroll (Mont.) Saturday night in the Frontier Conference Men's Basketball postseason quarterfinals but came up short in a high-scoring affair, falling 87-81 after a strong second-half surge by the Saints.
The Fighting Saints, which improved to 20-9 overall record, move on to the semifinals round versus No. 7 seed MSU-Northern (defeated No. 2 seed Bellevue, Neb., Friday evening) at 7:30 p.m. (Mountain Time) on Sunday.
How it happened
Brayden Pankonen hit early threes as the Trojans jumped out to an 8-0 lead and later stretched it to double digits.
The Trojans controlled much of the first half, building a lead as large as 17 points behind efficient interior play and hot perimeter shooting early. Dakota State shot over 56 percent in the opening half (18-of-32 field goals) and carried a 49-37 advantage into halftime.
Carroll flipped the momentum after the break, shooting nearly 60 percent in the second half (14-of-24 field goals) while connecting on six three-pointers on ten attempts. The Saints gradually erased the deficit and finally took control in the closing minutes with clutch outside shooting and free-throw efficiency, outscoring DSU 50-32 after halftime.
Carroll hit 16-of-18 from the free-throw line in the second half compared to Dakota State 9-of-14 free-throws.
Dakota State tied the game 72-72 with just over five minutes remaining, but Carroll responded with key baskets from Drew Jones and Isaiah Crane to regain the lead. The Saints used a 3-pointer by Jones with 3:16 left to take a 77-74 lead and never trailed.
The Saints converted late free throws to seal the six-point victory.
DSU scored consistently in the paint, finishing with a 40-22 advantage inside.
Dakota State Leaders
Nathan Ojukwu led the Trojans with a dominant inside performance:
- 26 points, 5 rebounds
- 8-for-13 shooting
- 10-for-15 at the free-throw line
Brayden Pankonen: 18 points, 4 three-pointers
Lukas Morgan: 14 points, team-high 9 rebounds
Tyler Beckwith: 10 points
DSU's bench contributed 34 points.
Carroll Leaders
Carroll featured balanced scoring led by:
- Drew Jones: 23 points off the bench, 5-of-8 from three, perfect 8-for-8 FT
- Isaiah Crane: 22 points, 6 rebounds
- Nate Christy: 15 points
- Isaac Round: 11 points
Team Comparison
| Category |
Dakota State |
Carroll |
| FG |
29-57 (50.9%) |
28-56 (50.0%) |
| 3PT |
5-16 (31.3%) |
11-26 (42.3%) |
| FT |
18-29 (62.1%) |
20-25 (80.0%) |
| Rebounds |
34 |
20 |
| Turnovers |
16 |
10 |
| Points in Paint |
40 |
22 |
| Bench Points |
34 |
29 |
End of the season
Saturday's setback marked the end of the 2025-26 squad with an overall record of 18-10, the most since the 2015-16 season. The Trojans tied for the sixth most single season wins in the school record book with the 2011-2 squad. DSU also set a single-season school record of 13 conference wins in the first year of the expanded Frontier Conference.
Saturday's game also marked the final career college basketball game for
Taine Mitchell.
