Sports

Ladyjacks split with ND opponents

By Tyler Ohmann

12/17/2013

A pair of games against familiar opponents left the Dakota College at Bottineau (DCB) women’s basketball team with one win and one tough loss.

The Ladyjacks earned a 78-52 win over Turtle Mountain Community College (TMCC) in Belcourt last Tuesday, but fell in a 75-67 game to Jamestown JV in Bottineau on Friday.

The games were the last for the Ladyjacks, who are now 8-6, before the semester break.

Last Tuesday the Ladyjacks traveled to Belcourt to take on TMCC for the second time this season. The result was similar to the first time the team’s met back on Nov. 26, when the Ladyjacks beat the visiting Mikinocks 77-50.

This time around the visiting Ladyjacks took care of the Mikinocks just as easily in a 78-52 game.

“(It was) a good win for us at a place where we seldom play well,” stated Ladyjacks head coach Wayne Johnson. “Both teams were missing a key player, as the Mikinocks played without Amber Bailey and we went without Leah Parizek.”

“It changed how the game was played and I thought we did a pretty good job of adapting,” Johnson added.

The Ladyjacks adapted quickly as they took an early lead and were up 11 by halftime. They used a strong effort on the glass to extend that lead in the second half. DCB out rebounded TMCC 66-42, it was especially good on the offensive glass for the Ladyjacks.

“We struggled a bit shooting the ball, missing some good shots and a large number of free throws, but did some things pretty well,” Johnson stated. “We worked hard defensively and played with a good team concept. We really pounded the offensive boards.”

Imani Scott led the Ladyjacks with 20 point and added seven boards. Sophomore Tiffany Bradford had a team-best 11 boards and added 11 points for a double-double. Savannah Bruce had 15 points and nine rebounds.

“We seem to be developing a bit better idea of our roles on the team and that will be critical in our run for a region championship,” Johnson stated.

Bradford too expressed that things are coming along for DCB.

“It was better than expected really, and we’re slowly but surely coming together,” Bradford said.

The Ladyjacks final contest of 2013 was against another familiar opponent in the Jimmies of Jamestown JV.

It was the third time this season that the two teams did battle.
The Jimmies bested the Ladyjacks the first two times, so DCB was hoping that a home crowd and a third time would be the charm.

Things started a bit slow for DCB, but they battled to within a five-point deficit at halftime.

“They put very good pressure on us and had the game played at their speed,” Johnson stated. “I was disappointed in the way we started the game. It seemed as though we were on Christmas break early.”

However, DCB clawed their way back into the game, and in the second half the Ladyjacks actually took the lead for a period, but the Jimmies proved too much and snuck away with an eight-point win, 75-67.

“We was up, so it was real frustrating,” Bradford said about the loss. “But we played real together like a team.”

The Jimmies forced the Ladyjacks into 34 turnovers, which hurt DCB, who held the rebounding edge 52-43.

“Turnovers had hurt us all night and we had some critical ones at this time that gave the Jimmies back the lead for good,” Johnson stated. “They did a good job of taking away the three point shot and turned us into a one dimensional team offensively.”

Savannah Bruce led the Ladyjacks offensively with 14 points despite playing limited minutes due to foul trouble in the first half.

Mary Jones had 11 rebounds and four assists, while Scott (13 points) and Bradford (10 points) were strong offensively.

“We are still learning and a long ways from where we hope to be at seasons end but there certainly were some positives in tonight’s game,” Johnson stated. “After the first few minutes we did a much better job of stopping their transition which had been the major problem in our first two games.”

“We did a pretty good job on the boards and shot free throws well,” Johnson continued. “We had some excellent play from our bench when we were struggling early defensively.”

DCB will open the new year and the second half of their season on Jan. 3-4 at the Northland Classic in Thief River Falls, Minn.

To get better in the second half is simple for Bradford.

“We have to play harder and smarter, so we get some wins,” Bradford said.