Tigers tame Seahawks in Florida

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – Holding the home team to just one 3-pointer, the No. 20 Dakota Wesleyan University men's basketball team halted (RV) Keiser University 76-60 on Tuesday in the Marietta Rappaport Holiday Classic in West Palm Beach, Fla.

 Senior Trae Vandeberg (Madison, S.D.) got the Tigers (11-5, 4-3 GPAC) off on the right track, hitting a 3-pointer early in the first half. The Tiger defense held strong, holding Keiser to 13 points for nearly four minutes in the first half. Ty Hoglund (Dell Rapids, S.D.) gave DWU a 10-point lead at the 5:43 mark in the first stanza.

 Keiser made a small run of its own at the end of the first half, but Samuel McCloud (Rapid City, S.D.) hit back-to-back 3-pointers that ultimately gave DWU a 34-27 lead heading into the locker room.

 Sparked by a layup from Hoglund and another 3-pointer by McCloud, the Seahawks were unable to come within 10 points of the Tigers early in the second half. McCloud found nothing but net on a long-range 3-pointer at the 11:28 mark to put DWU in front 53-36. Collin Kramer (Volga, S.D.) stretched the Tiger lead to 18 points with under 10 minutes to play on a made shot from beyond the arc and Tyson Smiley (Omaha, Neb.) sealed the win for the Tigers, hitting a 3-pointer of his own late in the second half.

 Hoglund tallied 24 points, six assists and four boards on 9-of-17 shooting from the field. Vandeberg added 13 points and four rebounds, while McCloud had 12 points on 4-of-5 shooting from three-point land in 19 minutes of work. Nygel Drury (Madison, Wis.) pitched in nine points and eight boards, while Smiley added seven points and five boards.

 The Tiger shot 43 percent from the field and 90 percent from the charity stripe and tallied 21 assists compared to 14 by Keiser.

 DWU's tough defense held the Seahawks to 1-of-16 shooting from beyond the arc and 26-of-65 from the field, while forcing 11 turnovers.

 The Tigers are back in action tomorrow against Johnson and Wales University of Miami at 12 p.m. (CT) in the Marietta Rappaport Holiday Classic in West Palm Beach, Fla.