Hot Hand In The Frozen Tundra

Let me tell you the story of Ben Woodside, a sharp shooting guard from North Dakota State. You've never heard of Woodside. Take a trip to Fargo and check out his game because Bison games are rarely on TV. Woodside is putting up numbers this season that remind you of "Pistol" Pete Maravich 40 years ago.

Last Friday in a 112-111 triple overtime loss to Stephen F. Austin, Woodside put up 60 points against the Lumberjacks becaming the 25th player in NCAA Division one men's basketball history to score 60 points or more against a D-1 opponant. 49 of those points were scored in the final 8:51 of regulation and the overtimes.

The legend of Ben Woodside doesn't stop there. Against Stephen F. Austin he equalled "Pistol" Pete's NCAA record for free throws made in a game with 30.

The next night Woodside "cooled" off with 31 points and 10 rebounds in a 98-77 win over Georgia Southern. Over 2 days Woodside averaged a staggering 45.5 points.

Woodside is 2nd in the NCAA in scoring averaging 26.9 points per game but don't call him a ball hog. He's also 3rd in the nation in assists with 7.6 per game.

The Albert Lea, Minnesota native set school records in scoring at Albert Lea high school and was "Mr. Basketball" in Minnesota in 2004. He choose to play in Fargo for North Dakota State and has thrived. Woodside led the Bison in scoring, assists and steals last season and was in the top 5 in those 3 categories in the Summit League

Woodside is no secret to those who cover the Summit League, which North Dakota State is a member. He was voted the leagues pre-season player of the year.

The only big time school North Dakota State has faced this year so far is Minnesota. Tubby Smith, whose has seen a few big time players in his years coaching in the SEC and Big 10, and his Gopher team limited Woodside to 16 points but he did dish out 7 assists. The Bison lost that game but their current record in 7-3.

The Bison face Valley City State (an NAIA school) Thursday night then the legend of Ben Woodside takes his act to Hollywood. North Dakota State faces Southern California Saturday in Los Angeles. We will see how Woodside's act plays in L.A., perhaps the legend will continue.

Photo Courtesy: Bob Nelson, North Dakota State