Dawson Beats In-State Rival Miles
(pictured: Damon Gros Ventre)
The Dawson Community College Buccaneers beat their in-state rivals, Miles Community College, 87-59 on Tuesday night in Miles City. The Pioneers took the lead 3-0 on a 3-pointer from Blessing Adesipe, but that was their last lead of the game. David Ajanaku answered with two straight baskets to spark a 10-0 run and Dawson locked down defensively, holding the Pioneers to 8 points in the first 12 minutes of the game. Miles turned it over 14 times in the half and only shot 28% from the field and 18% from 3-point range. Dawson took a 43-25 lead into the locker room. Ajanaku scored 12 points in the half and Damon Gros Ventre scored 8 points.
The Bucs outscored Miles 44-34 in the second half and cruised to the 28 point win over their in-state rival. The visitors shot 47% for the game and went to the free throw line 34 times, converting 21 of those attempts. They also forced 20 turnovers on the night and outrebounded the Pioneers 48-41. Dawson’s defense held Miles to 30% shooting from the field and 22% from the 3-point line for the game.
“We turned it over too much and had a few lapses, but I liked how we executed our game plan,” explained Dawson Coach Joe Peterson. “We played hard and made it challenging for them to score on the defensive end. Offensively it was great to see some different guys step up.”
Gros Ventre and Ajanaku led the Bucs in scoring with 17 points each, followed closely by Payton Sanders with 15 points. Ten different players scored for Dawson. Gros Ventre and Ajanaku also led the Bucs in rebounding with 9 and 8 respectively.
Adesipe finished with a game high 21 points for Miles.
Dawson is undefeated (5-0) in conference and sitting atop of the standings. They will play two more conference games this week to finish out the first round of conference play. Their next game is at home vs. Williston State College on Thursday night at 7:30 pm.
