Ben Woodside made a 17-foot jumper with 3 seconds left to give North Dakota State a 66-64 win Tuesday night against Oakland University for the Summit League championship and a berth in the NCAA tournament.
No. 1 seed NDSU (26-6) trailed much of the game — by 14 points in the first half — and needed a rally in the final five minutes to earn an NCAA bid in its first year of Division I eligibility.
Michael Tveidt's 3-point shot — his fourth of the game — put the Bison ahead 64-62 with 1:26 remaining and capped an eight-point run.
Oakland (22-12) tied it at 64 on Keith Benson's dunk with 12 seconds left.
Rather than calling time out, North Dakota State rushed down court, set up a screen for Woodside, who smoothly sank a shot from the top of the key.
A long 3-point try by Oakland's Johnathon Jones at the final horn bounced out.
Tveidt led NDSU with 21 points. Woodside, the conference player of the year who scored 60 in a game earlier this season, added 17.
Erik Kangas and Will Hudson each had 16 points for No. 3 seed Oakland (22-12). Jones added 15 and Keith Benson had 14 points and a game-high 14 rebounds.
Oakland surged ahead in the first half on 63 percent shooting. The Golden Grizzlies cooled to 32 percent in the second half.
Copyright 2009 AP News
