Sports

Jacks run with eighth-ranked Reivers

By Tyler Ohmann

11/12/2013

The Dakota College at Bottineau (DCB) men’s basketball team had a successful trip to Devils Lake this past weekend.

The Jacks split a pair of games winning 74-52 over Jamestown JV, and then falling 99-88 to the eighth-ranked team in Division I of junior college basketball—Iowa Western.

The games were played as part of the Lake Region State Classic, and despite a successful weekend, coach Cory Fehringer knows there is still a lot of work to be done if they want to get better.

“So far this team has shown moments of outstanding offensive fluidity to go along with tremendous stretches of team defense to create fast paced scoring,” Fehringer stated. “Although coaches and players are saying it’s early in the season, we have too many glimpses of poor execution, miscommunication and lack of physical rebounding.”

First on Friday the Jacks took on Jamestown JV, and DCB was hot from the get go.

The Jacks shot 80 percent from the field and forced 18 turnovers to bust out to a 20-point lead at halftime.

DCB did slow down in the second half, but  came out on top by 22.

“During the second half we did not sustain our defensive prowess, began taking contested shots, and proved we have much work to do regarding our consistency of team philosophy,” Fehringer stated. “I’m sure several spectators would assume we are being too critical as our guys did play hard, but it is hard work to become a great team.”

On Saturday the Jacks were faced with a tall task, to take on the No. 8 ranked Division I junior college in the nation. DCB is in Division II.

It was an uphill battle, but the Jacks hung right with the Reivers, and trailed by four, 43-39 at the break.

Midway through the second half the Jacks cut that lead to two, but a few mistakes down the stretch led to the loss.

“Free throws (or lack there of), rebounding effort and poor passing down the stretch was the difference,” Fehringer stated. “Most importantly our team was disappointed in the outcome because we did not give Iowa Western our best shot.”

DCB out shot the Reivers 53 percent to 49 percent, and the Jacks also shot a strong 12-of-27 (44.4 percent) from beyond the arc.
However, the game was won at the charity stripe as the Reivers hit 30-of-39 from the free throw line. Iowa Western also had the rebounding edge 33-28, with 14 of those boards on the offensive end.

DCB’s Julian Vasquez led all scorers with 30 points on an efficient 12-of-16 night from the floor. Vasquez did all his damage in 26 minutes, as he was in foul trouble most of the night.

“Vasquez has struggled to find a balance between aggressive offense and distributing the basketball to teammates early in the season,” Fehringer stated.

Another bright spot for the Jacks was the play of backup point guard Xavier Cruz. Cruz provided some instant offense off the bench as he came out and scored 17 points, dished out five assists and pulled in four rebounds.

Kolbi Selby added 10 points and hit three treys.

Darien Williams was the leader for Iowa Western. He had 26 points and was 10-for-14 from the line. He also added six rebounds and three blocks. The Reviers also had four other players in double figures in the win.

“It was a learning lesson versus a strong opponent as well as an eye opener demonstrating the potential this team may have if we begin taking ownership over our preparation, execution and readiness to play before the ball goes in the air,” Fehringer stated.

The Jacks also played last night at home against Dawson Community College, but scores and stats were unavailable by press time.

DCB’s next game comes on Friday and Saturday as they travel to Wahpeton to take part in the NDSCS Classic. Their next home game will be at 8 p.m. next Tuesday, Nov. 19 as they host Concordia JV.