SIOUX FALLS, S.D. — North Dakota State proved why it was the best team in the Summit League Sunday evening at the Denny Sanford Premier Center.

The Bison beat UND 70-62 in the conference tournament championship. The Fighting Hawks hung around in the second half, but couldn’t put together enough consecutive shots to retake the lead.

It was the Hawks’ first Summit League championship appearance since 2020, capping off a resurgent season for a program ravaged by the transfer portal.

Despite losing top-end talent like Treysen Eaglestaff and Mier Panoam, UND reloaded through key transfer portal additions, the emergence of redshirt freshman guard Greyson Uelmen and the return of senior guard Eli King.

The Hawks finished the 2025-26 season with an 18-17 overall record.

Here are five takeaways from the loss.

King left it all on the court in his final three games as a Hawk.

He logged 40 minutes against NDSU. King was only off the court for two minutes against St. Thomas and four minutes against Denver.

King lived up to his billing as the Summit League Defensive Player of the Year throughout the postseason. He also averaged 15.3 points per game in the tournament.

“We were so fortunate to get him at North Dakota,” head coach Paul Sather said. “The daily example that guy brings as far as how you treat people, how you go about your work, how you show up — he’s usually the first on the floor every day. He plays the most minutes for us. … He just smiles at adversity.

“He’s a special young guy. I’m going to think of him when I’m 75 years old, thinking about all the young people you get a chance to be a part of and coach, and I’m going to see a guy that’s probably doing really well in life, and I’m going to just be so grateful I got a chance to spend some time coaching. Eli’s going to be alright.”

Here’s what an emotional King had to say after Sunday’s loss.

“The last three years have been a blast,” King said. “Built a bunch of relationships that will last forever. Coaching staff, all the players, all the great teammates I’ve had, community support from Grand Forks. It’s been awesome. The last three years, basketball-wise, I enjoyed every second of it, had a lot of ups and downs.”

College basketball teams rarely look the same from year to year. That’s just the state of the sport right now, especially at the mid-major level.

UND is going to miss its seniors.

King was the only returning starter from last year and truly seemed to be the heart and soul of the team.

Garrett Anderson averaged 10.3 points per game, and his lengthy frame was pivotal on defense. Reggie Thomas seemed to always give a boost of energy off the bench, providing scrappy defense while averaging 4.8 points per game.

That being said, there are certainly building blocks for the future. That is, if they don’t enter the transfer portal this offseason.

Uelmen, the former walk-on, averaged 18.6 points per game in a breakout season. Redshirt sophomore Zach Kraft carved out a role in the starting lineup, providing 42.5% shooting from 3-point range and improved defense.

Junior center Josh Jones became an essential piece of the starting lineup, providing physicality, defense and a frame that the Hawks just don’t have anywhere else on the roster.

Junior forward George Natsvlishvili, freshman guard Anthony Smith III and freshman forward Marley Curtis each provided the occasional pop from the bench when needed.

“You hope so, right?” Sather said when asked if this season was something to build on. “That’s the goal. Every year right now, you kind of start with a new team. Just being real — free agency starts. But we’re to the point now where you smile at it and you wish the best for young people that are trying to do things in life that are changed (compared to) what they were 10 years ago, five years ago.

“You really take a year and you start in June, when you get them all on campus, and you try to make the most out of that time. And it’s not perfect, but it’s kind of like speed dating in a way. I don’t know what that’s like, I’ve never done it, but you don’t get to have everybody for four years or three years or even two years sometimes. But the time you have with them, make the most of it. Have the joy with it and love it. And even on the hardest days, because I’m telling you, this was a team that there were some days where we had to really be on these guys. We got some young guys that got to continue to grow and get better, but they just really responded, and their example of it was awesome.”

Kraft put up his best performance in months against NDSU.

He shot 5-for-9 from the field and finished with 19 points. Only Uelmen scored more, finishing with 24.

It was Kraft’s first double-digit point total since Feb. 19. He nearly reached his previous career high of 22 points.

Kraft scored 13 points in the second half. He nailed a 3-pointer with 3 minutes, 6 seconds to go to kick off a 9-0 run for UND.

North Dakota State collected 12 offensive rebounds and scored 12 second-chance points in the win over the Hawks.

UND managed to survive against St. Thomas while giving up 14 offensive rebounds in the tournament semifinals.

This time around, it stung.

“A game like that, where you’re not making the shots that we have been or that were just right there, we can’t be giving them extra possessions like that,” Sather said.

Head coach David Richman had positive words for Sather and his program after the Bison’s championship win.

“Paul Sather did a terrific job this year, terrific job,” Richman said. “You’ve got a guy like Eli King, the competitive spirit, and Greyson, and the tournament that they had. So I know there’s Bison people that don’t want to hear me talk about UND, but I’m glad to talk about a guy and a program that does things the right way. And Paul Sather does a lot of great things.”

Likewise, St. Thomas head coach John Tauer voiced his respect after the Tommies’ loss in the semifinals.

“Credit to North Dakota, they played incredibly,” Tauer said. “They’ve been really good all season. Paul does a tremendous job with his team and those guys.”