Dawson Opens Season with Home Win Against Rocky
Behind Joe Mpoyo’s 30 points, the Dawson Community College Buccaneers raced out to an early double-digit lead and didn't look back as they beat Rocky Mountain College JV 96-61 in men’s basketball action. Roniel Oguekwe started the season off right with a dunk on the Bucs first possession on an assist from Aidan Fishell. Rocky kept it pretty close for the opening nine minutes and were only down by one after a jumper by Tre Reed made the score 13-14. Over the next eleven minutes of the half, DCC outscored RMC 26-6, capped by a 3 pointer by Charlie Kruer to close out the half to give the Bucs a 40-19 advantage. Mpoyo netted 14 points in the first half and Dawson shot 7-17 from 3-point land.
The 2nd half story line was similar to the first half as the teams played pretty even through the first part of the half, but then they hit the accelerator to outscore the visitors by 18 points in the final 10 minutes, winning the second half 56-42. Rocky outshot the Bucs from the 3-point line in the 2nd half, but Dawson dominated the boards and scored at will in the paint to get the big win. The home team outscored Rocky 22-6 in the paint in the 2nd half and 34-10 for the game.
“I thought it was a good first game for us. Our offense started a little slow, but we stuck with it, took care of the ball and got good shots on each possession. Eventually it started turning in our favor. Everyone contributed. We still have a lot to work on and a lot of room for growth, but it’s always nice to start with a home win in front of a great crowd.”
Dawson shot 49%, forced 18 TO's, and outrebounded the Battlin Bears 44-25 in the game. The Bucs were led by Mpoyo who finished with 30 points, 8 rebounds and 4 assists. Fellow Sophomore Aidan Fishell contributed 14 points, along with 8 assists and 4 rebounds. Garett Diekhans added 13 points and 5 rebounds. Ten Buccaneers scored and all eleven collected at least one rebound.
The Battlin' Bears were led by Trenton Main’s 12 points.
Dawson will go to New Town, ND to play in the Buster Gillis Mon-Dak Tip Off Classic this upcoming Friday-Sunday (Nov 4-6). All 8 conference teams will participate in the true tournament format with the championship game on Sunday afternoon. The first game for Dawson will be against Dakota College at Bottineau on Friday night at 8:45 pm CST. All games in the tournament will be livestreamed at www.lrscroyals.com.
