Dawson Blasts Western Wyoming in Casper Thanksgiving Classic
After a last second loss on Friday night to the host team in the Casper Thanksgiving Classic, the Dawson Buccaneers didn't leave any room for doubt in their match-up with the Western Wyoming College Mustangs. Friday night saw ten ties and thirteen lead changes. On Saturday there were no ties and no lead changes. The Buccaneers made three-pointers on their first four possessions to go up 12-5 less than two minutes into the game. Michael Murphy started the barrage and then was followed by Matt Kinzeler, Brandon Hymes and then a second from Kinzeler. Dawson made eleven first half three-pointers en route to a 52-27 half-time lead, and then coasted to the 97-68 win.
"There was a lot to be happy about tonight," explained Dawson Coach Joe Peterson. "Our guys really responded well to a tough road loss last night. We came out after a quick turnaround and played Buccaneer basketball for forty minutes; high energy, fast paced and together. Everyone contributed significantly. Western is a tough, physical team, but today we played harder and were the aggressors."
The starters jumped out to a 16-6 lead four minutes into the game. The second five came in and stretched it to 29-12 four minutes later. After thirteen minutes, Dawson had complete control of the game with a 39-16 lead. They did it with great shooting from long range (11-20) and by absolutely dominating the boards (23-8) in the opening twenty minutes.
"Western Wyoming is a very good rebounding team," continued Peterson. They have averaged a five rebound advantage per game this season against some really good competition. We have not been rebounding well over the past four games, but our guys had the right mentality coming into the game and really got the job done."
Dawson also forced eleven turnovers in the opening half as they built their twenty-five point lead going into intermission. Six different Buccaneers connected from beyond the arc, led by Ade Onaleye's three, and two each from Hymes, Kinzeler and Murphy. Dawson racked up 13 assists in the opening half and scored 21 points in transition.
Dawson's three point shooting cooled a bit in the second half, but they scored inside the arc, shooting 14-23 (61%) from two point range. The Bucs outscored the Mustangs 28-16 in the paint. Dawson used a balanced attack to maintain their big lead and beat Western Wyoming 45-41 in the final twenty minutes.
The rebounding battle was won convincingly by Dawson 43-27 overall and 14-7 on the offensive glass for the game. Zakai Owens led the charge with eleven rebounds to go along with eight points, four assists and two steals. Dawson shot 50% from the field, 44% from the three-point line and 79% from the free throw line. All thirteen Buccaneers got in the scoring column and twelve players collected at least one rebound. Ade Onaleye paced the Bucs with 15 points and 6 rebounds. Michael Murphy had 12 points on four three-pointers. Troy Hugs and Matt Kinzeler contributed 11 points apiece. Brandon Hymes had a game high 9 assists, and only 1 turnover.
Dawson is now 7-3 on the season and will head to Gillette College next Saturday for a single game with the Pronghorns.
