Bison Women Host Western Illinois, IUPUI to Close Out Regular Season

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North Dakota State (9-19, 6-10 Summit League) is scheduled to host Western Illinois (11-16, 7-9 Summit League) at 5 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 25, in the Bison Sports Arena (5,830) ... This weekend is the final home appearance for NDSU seniors, 5-11 forward Abby Plucker (Parker, S.D.) and 5-10 forward Jennifer Lopez (Glyndon, Minn.) ... The Summit League “Food Fight” sponsored by the NDSU Student-Athlete Advisory Council (SAAC), Greek organizations and fraternities/sororities concludes Saturday ... Six bins are located in Bison Sports Arena south lobby for donation of canned goods and non-perishable food items ... Volunteers will be available to assist throughout the evening ... The food will be donated to Church United ... The Bison are currently tied for eighth place in the league standings ... NDSU is 6-6 at home this season including a 4-3 record in league play ... The Fighting Leathernecks are tied for fifth place in the league standings ... Western Illinois is 5-9 on the road this season including a 3-4 record in league play ... North Dakota State is scheduled to host IUPUI (12-16, 7-9 Summit League) at 7 p.m. Monday, Feb. 27 ... The Jaguars are tied for fifth in the league standings ... IUPUI is 1-11 on the road this season including a 1-6 record in league play ... In the NCAA statistics released Feb. 19, 6-foot-5 center Janae Burich is 16th in blocked shots (2.8 bpg) and 5-11 guard Hannah Linz,”The Sniper”, was 18th in three-point shooting (40%) ... Linz is 3rd in three-pointers attempted (374), 4th in three-pointers made (129) and 9th in three-point shooting (.345).

Burich Named Capital One Academic All-District 6 Team
North Dakota State center Janae Burich was named to the Capital One Academic All-District 6 women’s basketball first team by vote of district members of the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) ... Burich, a 6-foot-5 junior from Roseville, Minn. (Roseville H.S.) advances to the Capital One Academic All-America® national ballot ... The Capital One Academic All-America® team will be announced Feb. 23 ... Burich maintains a 4.0 grade point average majoring in marketing with a minor in biology ... To be eligible for the Capital One Academic All-America® honors, student-athletes must have a 3.30 or better cumulative GPA on a 4-point scale, have sophomore athletic standing, and be a starter or key reserve for their team.

The Series
This will be the 11th meeting between North Dakota State and Western Illinois ... The Bison hold a 7-3 advantage in the series ... Western Illinois won the first meeting 68-65 on Dec. 2 in Macomb ... Dani DeGagne led the Bison with 18 points, while Saule Kontautaite topped the Fighting Leathernecks with 17 ... This will be the 10th meeting between North Dakota State and IUPUI ... The Bison lead the series 6-3 ... IUPUI won the first meeting 49-39 on Nov. 30 in Indianapolis ... Janae Burich led the Bison with six points and 11 rebounds ... Kerah Nelson led the Jaguars with 16 points and eight rebounds.

Plucker Reaches 1,000 Points in Bison Career
North Dakota State University forward Abby Plucker became the 29th women’s basketball player to reach 1,000 career points with 14:13 left in the first half on a three-pointer at UNLV on Dec. 19, 2011 ... Plucker, a 5-foot-11 senior from Parker, S.D., enters Saturday’s game with 1,159 points in 122 career games and ranks 23rd all-time ... She is second on the team in scoring (10.1 ppg) and rebounding (7.4 rpg) in 28 starts ... Plucker and Hannah Linz have started in all 28 games for NDSU this season.

Bison On Radio
Saturday and Monday’s game will be on KFGO-AM 790 ... The pregame Saturday will start at 4:40 p.m. with a 5 p.m. tipoff ... The pregame Monday will start at 6:40 p.m. Monday with a 7 p.m. tipoff ... Veteran sportscaster Scott Miller will handle the play-by-play and NDSU Director of Athletic Broadcasting/Sales Jeremy Jorgenson will offer the color analysis ... There is a 20 minute-pregame and a 20-minute postgame ... Scott Miller hosts Bison Feedback on KFGO-AM 790 featuring women’s basketball coach Carolyn DeHoff and men’s basketball coach Saul Phillips on Tuesdays 7-8 p.m. throughout the season ... Game audio and Bison Feedback are free and available on GoBison.com and through the NDSU Bison mobile app for Android, iPhone and iPod Touch devices with a one-time premium purchase of $4.99.

Bison On the Internet
Live video of Saturday’s game with Western Illinois and Monday’s game with IUPUI will be available by subscription to NDSU All Access on GoBison.com.  Prices are $9.95 for a monthly subscription, $29.95 for four months, and $79.95 annually ... Live stats are available on GoBison.com free of charge and also through the NDSU Bison mobile app for Android, iPhone and iPod Touch devices.

At Home With the Bison
North Dakota State has compiled a 398-68 (.854) record at home, including an 110-30 mark inside the “Friendly Confines” over the past 10 seasons good for a .786 winning percentage ... The Bison are averaging 853 fans over 12 home dates this season including a season high 1,788 against South Dakota State on Jan. 20, 2012 ... NDSU ranked No. 102 in Division I women’s basketball attendance figures compiled by the NCAA in 2011, averaging 1,318 fans over 12 home dates.

Burich and the Blocked Shot
North Dakota State  6-foot-5 junior center Janae Burich tied the school single-game record of seven blocked shots in the 77-70 win over IPFW on Dec. 29 in the Bison Sports Arena ... She tied the record last season vs. IUPUI and shares the record with five other players ... Burich has 79 blocked shots this season ... The school record is 85 set by Bison Athletic Hall of Fame performer Lisa Stamp in 1986-87 ... On the NDSU career charts, Burich is 1st in blocks per game average (2.5 bpg) and 2nd in blocked shots (198) in 79 career games ... The career record is 222 set by Lisa Stamp from 1983-87.

Bison In The Summit League
North Dakota State was represented in the Summit League statistics released Feb. 21, 2012 (league games only) ... Individually in the top 10, Janae Burich is 2nd in rebounding (8.5 rpg), 3rd in blocked shots (2.8 bpg), 4th in field goal shooting (.488) and 9th in scoring (13.3 ppg) ... Abby Plucker is 6th in rebounding (7.7 rpg), 7th in free throw shooting (.851) and 10th in assists (2.7 apg) ... Jamie Van Kirk is 1st in free throw shooting (.886) and 8th in assists (2.8 apg) ... Dani DeGagne is 3rd in free throw shooting (.867) ... Britney Gaines is 5th in three-point shooting (.390) ... Hannah Linz is 4th in three-pointers made (2.0 avg/g) and 6th in three-point shooting (.386) ... Team-wise (top three), the Bison were 2nd in rebound margin (+3.5).