North Dakota rallied to defeat Northern Arizona 38-

The Dodgers and Nationals meet later tonight (8 p.m. ET) in a winner-take-all game to decide who will advance to face the Cubs in the NLCS. Go inside the numbers and matchups that will decide Thursdays game between the Los Angeles Dodgers and Washington Nationals, then vote for which team will win?at the bottom of the page.Inside the pitching matchupWhen Rich Hill is on the mound:?When he wasnt sidelined by blisters, Hill was one of the best starters in baseball in 2016, going 12-5 with a 2.12 ERA between the Oakland As and Los Angeles Dodgers and holding batters to a .195 average. On the surface, his repertoire seems pretty basic: A fastball from 88 to 91 mph and a big-breaking curveball. He throws both up in the strike zone -- 70 percent of his fastballs are in the upper half compared to the MLB average of 50 percent.What makes him so difficult to hit is the deception in his delivery. Both pitches are delivered on the same axis, what pitchers call mirroring.His curveball will also have different speeds and arcs to it. His fastball generates extreme spin, leading to fly balls and pop-ups. And just to throw a wrinkle into everything, he occasionally drops down and throws sidearm. Add it up, and hes an outlier in delivery and pitch location that major league hitters just dont see.Now, he has to throw strikes. In his Game 2 start, he generated a swing-and-miss rate of 40.7 percent, his highest of the season. But he was also wild, with an in-zone rate of 45.1 percent, his second-lowest of the season. The Nationals also chased just 11 percent of those pitches, a season-low against Hill. He ended up walking two batters in 4.1 innings and five of the six he allowed came when he was behind or even in the count (and five of those came off his curveball).Hes starting on three days rest so young Julio Urias will have to be ready for long relief in case Hill falters early. -- David SchoenfieldWhen Max Scherzer?is on the mound: ?The Washington Nationals Cy Young candidate led the National League in wins, innings, strikeouts, strikeout-to-walk ratio and home runs allowed. Corey Seager and Justin Turner tagged him in Game 1, Seager on a first-pitch fastball, Turner on a first-pitch curveball.Scherzer gets good armside run on his fastball that averaged 94.3 mph; only Justin Verlander and Rick Porcello had a higher swing-and-miss rate with their fastballs. Scherzer can get into trouble with it, however, when he thinks he can simply blow it by hitters and leaves it in the middle of the zone, as he did with Seager. His slider is a wipeout pitch, as only Jose Fernandez generated a higher swing-and-miss rate.Heres the catch, though: Scherzer had a big platoon split. Lefties hit .242/.315/.445 against him while righties hit .156/.189/.288. The Dodgers will be able to roll out seven left-handed batters (plus Hill, who also hits left-handed). -- SchoenfieldPlayer in the spotlightTrea Turner: The rookie center fielder is hitting .353 in the series even though he has 10 strikeouts (hes 6-for-7 when he puts the ball in play). If he can get on base, his speed adds a new dimension and gives Jayson Werth - who killed left-handers this year and has been locked in -- some RBI opportunities.?-- SchoenfieldWhat will decide Thursdays gameIf either of the starting pitchers get in trouble in this game, neither manager should be hesitant to go to their bullpens. The Dodgers (3.35) and Nationals (3.37) led baseball in bullpen ERA during the regular season.And each team may need their pens early, as both teams have been giving up runs early.The Nationals have given up a first inning run in every game of the series, despite posting a league-average first inning ERA. Both teams below the league average ERA in the first three innings (4.22), but each has struggled in the series, as the Dodgers have a 6.00 ERA in the first three innings while the Nationals sit at 8.25.The starter that holds his team in it the longest has the best chance to take home the win.?-- Daniel McCarthy,?ESPN Stats & InformationChoosing sides: Who will win?? ?Theres generally a reason why the road less traveled is less traveled. In this case, Rich Hill -- journeyman, blister, short rest, and all -- is that road. Ill take the road more traveled thanks. Thatd be the guy who has already won a Cy Young, is about to win another, is fully rested, and pitching at home. Max Scherzer and the Nats advance. -- Eddie Matz? The Dodgers have figured out a way to win throughout this injury-riddled season and they will figure out a way once more in Game 5. When Clayton Kershaw went down in late June, the Dodgers morphed into a team that could throw offense, a bullpen and a little defense at the problem. That experience will serve them well in the deciding game of the NLDS. -- Doug PadillaWhere the series standsIts tied up. The winner moves on to Wrigley Field to face Jon Lester in Game 1 of the NLCS on Saturday. Both bullpens figure to be used heavily once again. 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GRAND FORKS, N.D. -- Deion Harris returned an interception 40 yards with 2:43 to play and North Dakota rallied to defeat Northern Arizona 38-31 on Saturday for its ninth-straight win and a share of its first Big Sky Conference title.The Fighting Hawks (9-2, 8-0) trailed 31-10 early in the third quarter after the Lumberjacks (5-5, 4-3) scored on an 11-yard pass from running back Kendyl Taylor to Jonathan Baldwin.John Santiagos 15-yard touchdown run in the third quarter started the comeback. Running back Brady Oliveira had a 2-yard pass to Luke Fiedler and Keaton Studsruds 10-yarder tto Demun Mercer tied the game at 31 with 3:21 to play.ddddddddddddNorthern Arizona, which had won four straight, reached the North Dakota 20 before turning the ball over on downs with 29 seconds left.Kemp finished with 416 yards passing with three scores but was picked twice. Delshawn McClellon, Elijah Marks and Emmanuel Butler each surpassed 100 yards receiving.Studsrud was 13 of 34 for 252 yards. Oliveira ran for 103, and Mercer had 10 catches for 137. ' ' '