Bucs Start Season with a Bang
The three time defending Mon-Dak Conference Tip-off Tournament Champions started the season with a resounding 94-57 win over Dakota College at Bottineau in their first round game Friday afternoon. The tournament is being hosted at the Four Bears Events Center in New Town, North Dakota.
"I loved the energy we came out with and the intensity we had on the defensive end," exclaimed Dawson Coach Joe Peterson. "We made it really hard on them with our pressure and rotations. Our defense really kickstarted our offense. We are fast and our bench is deep so we love to speed up the game as much as we can. The only time we struggled is when we stopped moving the ball. We've come a long way in the past month, but still have a long way to go."
The Buccaneers raced out to an early lead and controlled the game from start to finish. Mikey Ngoyi scored the first six points of the game. Their defense was incredibly stingy in the opening stages. When Zakai Owens found Kuich Gatwech racing down the floor for a lay-up, the Bucs were up 26-3 eight minutes into the game. The Lumberjacks then connected on 6 of 8 from 3-point range and climbed back into the game, pulling within 11 points at 43-32. That was as close as they would get. The Bucs defense forced 15 turnovers in the first half and shot 56% from the field and 54% from the 3-point line. Ngoyi finished the half with 11 points and Ade Onaleye scored 10 points.
The start of the second half was similar to the beginning of the game. Dawson only allowed four points in the first eight minutes as they built their lead back up to over 30 at 67-36. The Buccaneers held the Jacks to 18% shooting from the field in the second half and 14% from the 3-point line, only scoring 23 points. Dawson held a forty point lead until the Jacks made a late three-pointer to make the final score 94-57.
Dawson shot 50% from the field and 45% from the 3-point line for the game. They outrebounded Dakota College 48-41. They also forced 23 turnovers and scored 36 points off those turnovers, while holding DCB to 28% shooting from the field. The Bucs dominated points in the paint 52-16.
All fourteen Buccaneers played and contributed significantly with ten Buccaneers scoring and eleven Buccaneers getting at least one rebound. Mikey Ngoyi led the way with 22 points in 15 minutes. He made 9-12 from the field and 2-3 from 3-point range. Kuich Gatwech scored 20 points in 15 minutes, shooting 9-15 from the field. Damjan Tapuskovic led Dakota College with 15 points.
Dawson will play Lake Region State College in the semifinals at 7:00 pm CST on Saturday night. Lake Region beat Dakota County Technical College 120-107 in the second quarterfinal game.
