UND fans… we have made it! The Summit League Tournament is upon us once again. While it was unfortunate that this year, the women were unable to qualify for the tournament, the men finished tied for 5th in the league and will be playing on Sunday Night against Oral Roberts.
In normal circumstances, I would be back in Marshall right now, getting ready to head down with my dad for 4 days of basketball nirvana. This would have been my 2nd year going to the Summit tournament. Of course, this isn’t normal circumstances. With no fans allowed at the tournament (and held at the Pentagon instead of the Denny), I will be limited to watching it on Midco and ESPN+.
Last years magical run to the title game certainly is making UND fans think that they could make a similar run. This time it will be a little tougher road but, UND has shown that they can play and beat some of the top teams in the conference. While it might not have the firepower like they did last year, they certainly have better depth in the starting lineup and some bench players that can step up and have big games.
UND is certainly going to have their hands full with Max Abmas, who was chosen as the Summit Player of the Year. Abmas not only leads the conference in scoring, but he leads the nation in scoring. The Sophomore is not afraid to pull up from 35 feet and doesn’t need a lot of space to do his thing. His running mate, Kevin Obanor, is a walking double-double waiting to happen. These two players give ORU a great shot at winning the title, however UND has beaten them once back in January and are certainly a better version of themselves than they were during that trip to Tulsa. UND is going to have to shoot well enough to have a chance. They will also have to limit the turnovers and slow ORU down in transition, they cannot make this a track meet.
Two UND players were honored in the conference awards this week. First: Freshman Point Guard Tyree Ihenacho was chosen on the all-newcomer squad. He was also chosen as the Freshman of the Year in the Summit, becoming the first UND player to win such an award since the days of the old NCC conference (2001). The other player that was honored by Filip Rebraca, who was chosen to be on the 2nd team All-Summit. On the women’s side of the things, Julia Fleecs was chosen for the honorable mentioned team.
So while this year is going to be a drag not going, it safe to say that I will be planning on going in 2022. UND should have a pretty good team next year on the men’s side and the women will be bounce back and start their climb to the Summit. To UND fans, I say this: I know that most of you have plans to hit up St. Paul and the NCHC tournament or go to the NCAA regional in Fargo, St. Paul or Sioux Falls, but perhaps it is time for you to add the Summit Tournament to your long term planning as well. You will be glad you did.
Until then, lets see if Sather can lead UND to another magical run, but this time, with one more win this time.