Yes, they could have. They are playing MBB there (just mens, not womens) while their BS Arena is under construction so they have connections.
(Yes, there was a Force game schedule for Scheels the night of Dec 19; however, there is no game Dec 20. NDSU could've politely asked the Force to move the game back one day. It probably would've been better for the Force to not be up against the other event in Fargo the night of Dec 19th anyway.)