Pemberton leads North Dakota against UMKC after 26-point outing

UMKC Kangaroos (11-19, 7-8 Summit) at North Dakota Fighting Hawks (10-18, 5-10 Summit)

Grand Forks, North Dakota; Saturday, 2 p.m. EST

BOTTOM LINE: North Dakota plays UMKC after Kiera Pemberton scored 26 points in North Dakota’s 76-70 loss to the Omaha Mavericks.

The Fighting Hawks have gone 8-6 at home. North Dakota ranks second in the Summit with 24.4 defensive rebounds per game led by Pemberton averaging 5.8.

The Kangaroos are 7-8 in Summit play. UMKC ranks third in the Summit with 31.6 rebounds per game led by Elauni Bennett averaging 6.1.

North Dakota is shooting 43.2% from the field this season, 1.1 percentage points lower than the 44.3% UMKC allows to opponents. UMKC averages 64.8 points per game, 4.6 fewer than the 69.4 North Dakota allows to opponents.

The Fighting Hawks and Kangaroos face off Saturday for the first time in Summit play this season.

TOP PERFORMERS: Pemberton is scoring 16.4 points per game and averaging 7.1 rebounds for the Fighting Hawks. Nevaeh Ferrara Horne is averaging 1.5 made 3-pointers over the last 10 games.

Alayna Contreras is shooting 30.8% from beyond the arc with 1.8 made 3-pointers per game for the Kangaroos, while averaging 16.6 points. Emani Bennett is averaging 15.2 points over the last 10 games.

LAST 10 GAMES: Fighting Hawks: 2-8, averaging 66.3 points, 27.7 rebounds, 6.5 assists, 4.4 steals and 3.8 blocks per game while shooting 44.7% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 73.9 points per game.

Kangaroos: 4-6, averaging 69.5 points, 30.6 rebounds, 10.6 assists, 5.5 steals and 1.7 blocks per game while shooting 44.6% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 75.0 points.