Nov. 15, 1998

Northern State started its season on the right foot with a 76-67 win Sunday in Wachs Arena.

Senior forward Mark Rich (Aberdeen, S.D.) was steady throughout, providing 16 points, 11 boards and six assists to pace the Wolves. Sophomore guard Jared Miller (Mitchell, S.D.) scored a team-high 18 points.

As a team, the Wolves dominated the boards, outrebounding the Comets 49-30. Senior forward Kyle Johnson (Coon Rapids, Minn.) matched Rich's effort on the glass with 11 boards. Three other Wolves had five or more rebounds.

The Comets came into Aberdeen flying high after shellacking the University of Winnipeg 107-73 in their season opener. But the Wolves put the clamps on the eighth-ranked team in NAIA II down the stretch. MSU clawed back to take the lead 51-48 on a four-point play by sophomore forward Ben Hoff (fouled on a made 3-pointer) with over 10 minutes remaining in the game. But within 30 seconds the Wolves answered with a 3-pointer from junior guard Dan Fischer (Bagley, Minn.) that tied the score and NSU would never trail again.

Hoff led the Comets with 19 points on a blistering 6-of-7 shooting effort from dowtown.