# 2020–21 North Dakota Fighting Hawks men's basketball team

The 2020–21 North Dakota Fighting Hawks basketball team represented the University of North Dakota in the 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Fighting Hawks were led by second-year head coach Paul Sather and played their home games at the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center in Grand Forks, North Dakota, as members of the Summit League.

## Previous season

Under first-year head coach Paul Sather, the Fighting Hawks finished the 2019–20 season with a record of 15–18 overall, 7–9 in Summit League play, to finish sixth place. It was a monumental year for the Fighting Hawks as they reached the championship game of the Summit League tournament for the first time before losing to rival North Dakota State. The Fighting Hawks also defeated Big Ten opponent Nebraska during the regular season by a score of 75–74.

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Non-conference regular season ||||||
| November 25, 2020* 12:00 p.m. | | at Miami (OH) | L 67–81 | 0–1 | Millett Hall (No fans allowed) Oxford, OH |
| December 2, 2020* 8:00 p.m. | | at Dixie State | L 73–74 | 0–2 | Burns Arena (475) St. George, UT |
| December 4, 2020* 8:00 p.m. | | at Minnesota | L 67–76 | 0–3 | Williams Arena (No fans allowed) Minneapolis, MN |
| December 10, 2020* 5:30 p.m. | | vs. South Dakota Dakota Showcase | W 75–71 | 1–3 | Sanford Pentagon (No fans allowed) Sioux Falls, SD |
| December 11, 2020* 5:30 p.m. | | vs. South Dakota State Dakota Showcase | L 62–74 | 1–4 | Sanford Pentagon (No fans allowed) Sioux Falls, SD |
| December 12, 2020* 5:30 p.m. | | vs. North Dakota State Dakota Showcase | L 52–53 | 1–5 | Sanford Pentagon (No fans allowed) Sioux Falls, SD |
| December 17, 2020* 1:00 p.m. | | at Southern Illinois | L 64–85 | 1–6 | Banterra Center (No fans allowed) Carbondale, IL |
| December 18, 2020* 3:00 p.m. | | at Southern Illinois | L 50–62 | 1–7 | Banterra Center (No fans allowed) Carbondale, IL |
| December 22, 2020* 6:00 p.m. | | at Drake | L 55–88 | 1–8 | Knapp Center (325) Des Moines, IA |
| Summit League regular season ||||||
| January 2, 2021 3:30 p.m., ESPN+ | | Kansas City | W 52–45 | 2–8 (1–0) | Betty Engelstad Sioux Center (600) Grand Forks, ND |
| January 3, 2021 3:30 p.m., ESPN3 | | Kansas City | L 53–77 | 2–9 (1–1) | Betty Engelstad Sioux Center (464) Grand Forks, ND |
| January 8, 2021 7:30 p.m., ORUSN | | at Oral Roberts | W 72–71 | 3–9 (2–1) | Mabee Center (1370) Tulsa, OK |
| January 9, 2021 7:30 p.m., ORUSN | | at Oral Roberts | L 57–74 | 3–10 (2–2) | Mabee Center (1447) Tulsa OK |
| January 15, 2021 7:30 p.m., MidcoSN | | North Dakota State | L 45–62 | 3–11 (2–3) | Betty Engelstad Sioux Center (650) Grand Forks, ND |
| January 16, 2021 7:30 p.m., MidcoSN | | North Dakota State | W 82–78 $^{OT}$ | 4–11 (3–3) | Betty Engelstad Sioux Center (650) Grand Forks, ND |
| January 22, 2021 7:30 p.m., MidcoSN2 | | at South Dakota State | L 73–92 | 4–12 (3–4) | Frost Arena (787) Brookings, SD |
| January 23, 2021 7:30 p.m. | | at South Dakota State | L 74–85 | 4–13 (3–5) | Frost Arena (786) Brookings, SD |
| January 29, 2021 7:30 p.m., MidcoSN2 | | Western Illinois | W 83–81 | 5–13 (4–5) | Betty Engelstad Sioux Center (558) Grand Forks, ND |
| January 30, 2021 7:30 p.m., MidcoSN2 | | Western Illinois | L 87–99 | 5–14 (4–6) | Betty Engelstad Sioux Center (556) Grand Forks, ND |
| February 5, 2021 2:00 p.m. | | at Denver | W 85–82 $^{OT}$ | 6–14 (5–6) | Hamilton Gymnasium (No fans allowed) Denver, CO |
| February 6, 2021 2:00 p.m. | | at Denver | L 81–85 $^{OT}$ | 6–15 (5–7) | Hamilton Gymnasium (No fans allowed) Denver, CO |
| February 13, 2021 2:30 p.m., MidcoSN | | South Dakota | W 85–76 | 7–15 (6–7) | Betty Engelstad Sioux Center (650) Grand Forks, ND |
| February 14, 2021 2:30 p.m., MidcoSN | | South Dakota | W 85–81 | 8–15 (7–7) | Betty Engelstad Sioux Center (650) Grand Forks, ND |
| February 19, 2021 7:00 p.m. | | at Omaha | L 62–72 | 8–16 (7–8) | Baxter Arena (388) Omaha, NE |
| February 20, 2021 7:00 p.m. | | at Omaha | W 81–69 | 9–16 (8–8) | Baxter Arena (586) Omaha, NE |
| Summit League tournament ||||||
| March 7, 2020 5:45 p.m., MidcoSN/ESPN+ | (5) | vs. (4) Oral Roberts Quarterfinals | L 65–76 | 9–17 | Sanford Pentagon Sioux Falls, SD |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Central. ||||||
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