Fresno State Athletics
Fresno State
North Dakota State
Olekaibe Extends Scoring Streak in Loss
11/26/2011 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
FARGO, N.D. -- Fresno State knew it had a big mountain to climb by traveling to play at North Dakota State, but despite another second-half rally, the Bulldogs fell 78-65 to the undefeated Bison on the road Saturday night.
"It was a tough night," head coach Rodney Terry said. "We didn't compete hard enough in the first half. Defensively, we did a good job on the perimeter guys, but gave up too much inside."
Sophomore guard Kevin Olekaibe paced the Bulldogs with 24 points through the net to extend his double-digit scoring streak to eight consecutive contests dating back to last season. It also marked his third night with 24 or more in the past four games to up his season scoring clip to 21.3 points per game.
"Kevin knows we need him to score the ball for us," head coach Rodney Terry said.
The 'Dogs also got another solid night from senior Jonathan Wills, who followed up his career-high 26 points earlier in the week against UTSA with his first career double-double at 10 points and 10 rebounds against the Bison.
"Jonathan was real solid tonight," Terry said. "He got two quick fouls so he had to sit him early on. We need him on the floor and we are better when he's out there. He's a versatile player that can play inside out."
After falling behind 38-21 at the half and by as many as 23 points, the Bulldogs cut the deficit to 70-60 with 2:22 courtesy of an 11-0 run over a stretch of 2:26.
NDSU's Marshall Bjorklund powered his way around the low post for his third career double-double of his own with a career-high 27 points and tied a career-best by adding 14 rebounds to help keep the Bison undefeated. Bjorklund, a sophomore, was 12 of 15 from the field for the North Dakota State (6-0), who is off to their best start to a season since going 7-0 in 2000-01.
"They are a good team that is playing well right now," Terry said of the Bison. "We had to play extremely well to come in and knock them off at their place. We didn't do that tonight."
Bulldogs' forward Jerry Brown added nine points and seven rebounds, while Tyler Johnson played 36 minutes and chipped in seven points as the `Dogs wrapped up their fifth straight game away from home.
"Tyler has played well for us this season," Terry noted. "He is going to play as hard as he can play and did that tonight."
Fresno State (2-4) returns to home for a pair at the Save Mart Center next week, as the `Dogs host the Academy of Art on Wednesday at 7 p.m. and Utah on Saturday at 1 p.m.
"Our Town. Your Team!" - Fresno State returns to the Save Mart Center on Wednesday night at 7 p.m. to play the Academy of Art University Urban Knights before bringing some December Madness to the San Joaquin Valley with a rare Saturday afternoon home game with the Pacific-12's Utah Utes at 1 p.m. Season tickets remain through the Bulldog Foundation by calling 559-278-7160. To secure single-game tickets, you can visit Ticketmaster online, through ticketmaster.com, call 1-800-745-3000 or visit the Save Mart Center Box Office between 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. (Monday-Friday).
