With 1:01 to go, UND trailed 75-74 with the chance of losing a fourth straight game. Sophomore guard Mier Panoam danced to a layup, putting UND up 76-75 and leading them to a 6-0 run in the last 47 seconds.
The Fighting Hawks defeated Weber State 80-75 at the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center last Saturday night, improving to 4-5 on the season and 2-0 at home.
Panoam was the star of the game, taking over in crunch time. Panoam finished with 22 points on 7/15 shooting with six rebounds and four assists.
“He’s really an energetic guy,” freshman forward George Natsvlishvili said. “I love playing with him. Every practice, he’s teaching me everything because I’m adapting still. But he’s a really energetic guy, and that’s what I love in him.”
UND head coach Paul Sather has loved Panoam’s growth in his short time with the program.
“It’s fun to see him really growing into this point guard role,” Sather said. “The question was, ‘Is he more off the ball? Is he more of a combo? Is he a point?’ And he’s really just taking the right approach on being that guy that has the ball in his hands that can make plays for others. He had four assists tonight, which I think is his high, and no turnovers tonight. There’s a development there, and he’s got to keep coming.”
Natsvlishvili had a breakout game with his first career double-double. He scored 12 points shooting 6-11 from the field and had 10 rebounds, seven of which were offensive.
“I love to crash, and I love to go get the ball… I really love going for the ball and glass even if it’s Wembanyama under the glass,” Natsvlishvili said.
UND had three other double-digit scorers: King had 13, and Eaglestaff and Kuljuhovic both had 12.
Weber State’s senior guard duo, Blaise Threatt and Miguel Tomley, shined. Threatt played 39 minutes, scoring 23 points on 9/12 shooting with five rebounds and three steals.
Tomley played 36 minutes, scoring 18 points while going 5/11 from the field.
After a tough five-game road trip where UND went 1-4, it was a much-needed home win.
“We knew our losses … we knew we had the game,” Panoam said. “It was more of just like let’s stick together, show how connected we are. We got grit to us; we got some dogs, and we’ll keep going.”
With the win, UND splits the Big Sky-Summit Challenge after losing at Eastern Washington last Wednesday 87-81.
UND returns to the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center on December 15 when they face the University of Texas-San Antonio.
Elijah Andrews is the Dakota Student Sports Reporter. He can be reached at [email protected].
