Dawson Loses at NDSCS
The Dawson Buccaneers dropped their second conference game of the year on the road Sunday afternoon to the North Dakota State College of Science Wildcats, 89-85. The loss put NDSCS on top of the Mon-Dak Conference with an 8-1 record. Dawson falls to 6-2 with four games to go.
"I thought NDSCS played hard and their size and length hurt us," explained Dawson Coach Joe Peterson. "They got easier baskets than we did and that usually makes a big difference in a game. I loved how we fought back and gave ourselves a chance at the end, but we need to play that hard all game long."
After a game that included 16 ties and 17 lead changes, the Buccaneers found themselves down by ten with 1:22 left, 80-70. They quickly got back into it with a couple of steals and scores to go on a 10-1 run. With :35 seconds remaining, they were only down by a point, but they couldn't complete the comeback and Cham Okey's free throw with three seconds left gave the Wildcats a four point advantage and essentially sealed the win.
The first half was a contrast of styles with NDSCS having the advantage inside, connecting on 11-15 from two point range while Dawson connected on 6-9 from three-point range. Both teams had 8-0 runs at different points of the opening twenty minutes and the largest lead either team had was a four point advantage by Dawson at 28-24.
NDSCS shot 32 free throws in the second half and continued to dominate inside. John Angau scored 21 points after the break, including 5-7 shooting from the field and 3-4 shooting from the three point line. He also made 8-9 from the free throw line.
For the game, the rebounding battle and turnovers were pretty even. The Wildcats advantage came from inside the three-point line where they made 20-31 and at the free throw line where they went 31-40. Dawson made 10-17 from the three point line for the game (59%), but it wasn't enough.
Angau finished with a game high 26 points and Cham Okey scored 21 points, including 15-17 from the free throw line. Brandon Hymes led Dawson with 19 points and 8 rebounds. Kai Guess scored 18. Sharif Yakubu scored 14 points before fouling out.
Dawson is back in action on Monday in an early game on the road against Lake Region State College at 2:00 pm CST.
