TIGER MEN’S BASKETBALL FALLS SHORT IN THEIR ATTEMPT TO COMPLETE THE COMEBACK
Aberdeen, S.D. – Dakota Wesleyan men's basketball kept up with No. 16 Carroll College throughout the game, but slow starts hurt the Tigers in their search for the comeback win from Wachs Arena in the Small College Basketball Classic.
The Quick Details
Score:
DWU 71 - #16 CC 78
Records:
DWU 2-4
#16 CC 4-1
How It Happened
No. 16 Carroll got off to a hot start right away against Dakota Wesleyan, gaining an 8-3 lead only five minutes in. D'Andre Dennis put the Tigers within two points of tying the game after six minutes of play after he connected on a shot beyond the arc that was assisted by Kallan Herman. Dennis kept the margin at two points, making a jump shot at the Tigers continued to trail 10-8, and forcing Carroll to call for a full timeout. As the game neared the 10-minute mark of the first half and DWU trailing 15-8, the Tigers called for a 30-second timeout to regroup. Samuel Aslesen, connected on a three-point shot shortly after putting the Tigers within striking distance again of tying the game at 17-14. With eight minutes to play in the first half, Nick Wittler, made his jump shot before getting fouled by Carroll, cutting the margin back to two points. Wittler converted on the and-one, setting the Tigers within one point of tying the game. Dakota Wesleyan went cold for the next three-minutes of play as their one-point deficit quickly grew to five after Alan Kikwaki hit a jump shot with five minutes and 15-seconds remaining in the first half. DWU continued to battle though in the first half, as they climbed back into the game after Wittler made a layup and the Tigers trailed 24-21. As the clocked reached three-minutes remaining in the half, Wittler once again received the and-one opportunity and converted, setting DWU down by two-points, 26-24. Dennis made one-of-two free throws with just under three minutes to go as DWU was now within one-point of tying the game. It wasn't until Wittler went one-of-two at the line with two and a half minutes to play that the Tigers were able to tie the game at 26-26. Dakota Wesleyan was unable to find another basket in the first half, as Carroll pushed the tied game out to a five-point lead heading into the break.
Once Dakota Wesleyan got rolling in the second half, they clawed their way back to trail 42-40 with 13:12 to go on the clock as CC called for a 30-second timeout before pushing their lead back to five just second after play resumed. The two-point deficit slowly went away, as the Tigers were unable to answer the shots from beyond the arc. Dennis made a layup with 8:16 to go in the game, but DWU still found themselves trailing 56-51 as they called for a full timeout. Late in the game, Dakota Wesleyan went on a 9-4 run brining the Carroll lead to eight points, 69-61. As the final minute of play came round, Carroll was ahead of Dakota Wesleyan 71-61. Carroll's reaming seven points all came via free throw as the Tigers grabbed ten with three-pointers from Drew Van Regenmorter and Aslesen, then baskets from Blaze Lubbers, and Regenmorter.
Overall, the Tigers shot 43.9% from the floor while holding Carroll to shooting 48.4% from the field. DWU shot 82.4% at the foul line making 14-of-17 shots, as CC shot 68.4% at the free throw line making 13-of-19 shots. DWU grabbed 28 boards, three points off turnovers, eight second chance points, 30 points in the paint, and the bench chipped in with 27.
Beyond The Results
- Nick Wittler: 15 points, 38.4 FG%, 83.3 FT%, and three rebounds
- D'Andre Dennis: 13 points, 50 FG%, 50 3-pt%, 75 FT%, and five rebounds
- Blaze Lubbers: 10 points, 66.6 FG%, 1-for-1 at the foul line, and six rebounds
Up Next
The month-long road trip is slowly ending for the Tigers. DWU will take two more road trips in the month of November with one being a GPAC matchup and another one being a nonconference game. DWU will be on the road for another GPAC game on Tuesday, November 22 as they take the short road trip to Yankton, S.D. for a 7:45 p.m. tip-off against the Lancers of Mount Marty.