MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. – Senior Nick Norton's historic performance lifted the Drake University men's basketball team over North Dakota State, 95-88, in Saturday night's inaugural U.S. Bank Stadium Classic.
 
Norton finished with one of the most impressive stat lines in team history of 18 points, a school-record 17 assists and 13 rebounds. In addition to being just the second triple-double in Drake history, his 17 assists were the most for a Division I player in a triple-double since at least 2010 and are also tied for the fifth most assists in a game in that time.
 
"We try to play fast, get up and down and I did the easy part tonight," Norton said. "They [teammates] got the box outs, I just grabbed the loose balls, fed them the ball and they were able to make shots."
 
The Bulldogs did make shots, to the tune of 56.1 percent and 52.2 percent (12-of-13) from the three-point arc. Drake (5-1) needed nearly every one of those shots and 23 points from Nick McGlynn to hold off the Bison. D.J. Wilkins also had one of his best games as a Bulldog with 15 points and five assists.
 
NDSU (2-6) was led by 29 points from Vinnie Shahid and 21 points from Deng Geu.
 
The Bison went on a 16-3 run to close out the first half and trim Drake's lead to 45-42 at intermission. The Bulldogs assisted on an impressive 12 of their 14 field goals in the half, including eight from Norton.
 
The Bulldogs stretched their lead to as many as 13 early in the second half thanks to hot shooting, including going 7-of-12 from three-point range. In the midst of that shooting display, Norton continued to dish out assist after assist. 
 
With 9:23 remaining in the game, the guard set up McGlynn with a lay-up for his 16th assist of the game, to break the Drake record. Just a few plays later he tallied his 10th rebound for a triple-double, the second in team history and first since 1989.
 
"He's been a monster down low," Norton said of McGlynn. "He's fun to play with and plays so hard."
 
At the final media timeout, the Bulldogs led 90-78, but the Bison defense held Drake without a field goal until there was less than a minute remaining in the game. The Bulldog defense made the stops they needed and led by six when North Dakota State had to start fouling in an attempt to extend the game before the Bulldogs came away with the seven-point win.
 
"We're getting better every day, playing good teams and coming out with wins," Norton said of the team's first six games. "We've been in different situations in each game and those are good experiences as we move along with the season."
 
The Bulldogs' next game is Thursday, Dec. 6, at 7 p.m. on the road at Milwaukee.