Dawson Headed to Regional Championship Game Again!
The top two teams in Region 13 will face off again in the Region XIII Championship Game Monday night in Glendive, MT. The #1 Seed Dawson Community College Buccaneers will host North Dakota State College of Science Wildcats at 6:00 pm. Dawson won 2 out of 3 vs. NDSCS this season. It will be the 4th time in 6 years that DCC will play in the championship.
In the semifinal game on Thursday night, Dawson Community College beat Williston 81-78. Dawson started the game relatively slow and Williston State took the early lead 16-9. Reggie Martin banked in a 3-point shot and then Charles Lampten followed it up with a dunk off a pass from Jalen Tot. Cordell Stinson then scored on a drive and made a free throw to cap a traditional three-point play. Williston answered back with a dunk by Keean Reynolds, but Dawson scored the next 9 points on a jumper from Kennedy Brown, 3-pointer from Michael Jok and lay-ups by Lampten and Riley Spoonhunter. In total, it was a 17-2 run that gave Dawson a 26-18 advantage. They kept the margin around 8 points for the rest of the half and then Jajuan Tot scored a couple of lay-ups in the closing minute to send the Bucs into halftime with a 40-30 lead. Jalen Dearing scored 13 points in the opening half for the Tetons, including 3 from deep.
The Bucs held the lead the entire second half. The closest the visitors got was 71-70 when Dearing dialed another one in from long range, but Martin scored on a couple of drives for Dawson to keep the Tetons at bay. Dawson had a decent lead several times in the closing minutes, but missed some clutch free throws to give Williston a chance at the end. Caleb Johnson made a 3-pointer to bring the Tetons within 2 points at 80-78. Mike Jok made a free throw with 7 seconds left to give Dawson a narrow 3-point lead, but Williston wasn't able to get off a shot before the final buzzer sounded. It was the 2nd straight year that Dawson beat Williston in the semifinals and their 9th straight win against the Tetons.
Bucs Coach Joe Peterson had this to say, "It was kind of an ugly game, but we made the plays we needed to tonight. Kennedy Brown and Reggie Martin gave us a big lift off the bench and I love how we kept our composure, stayed together as a team and kept believing. We are excited to get to host another Region Championship game here at Dawson!"
Dawson was led by Reggie Martin's 16 points (7-10 FG), 3 rebounds, and 3 assists. Riley Spoonhunter efficiently scored 14 points. Kennedy Brown added 13 points and 5 rebounds. Overall, the Buccaneers shot 51% from the field which helped them down the final stretch. They outscored WSC 44-26 on points in the paint and their bench outscored them 34-14 behind Martin and Brown.
Williston State College was led by Jalen Dearring's 25 points (6-13 3pt) and 4 rebounds. Caleb Johnson added 18 points and 4 rebounds. Alonzo Linton added 13 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists. The Tetons won the rebounding battle 39-31 and had 12 offensive rebounds which kept them close for the entirety of the game. Ultimately, Dawson's defense limited the visitors to only 42% shooting for the night, which proved to be the difference in the game.
The win moves Dawson to 21-2 on the season and it was their 11th straight win overall and 26th straight home conference win, dating back to January 2019.
Dawson will host North Dakota State College of Science on Monday at 6:00 pm for the Mon-Dak tournament championship.
