MITCHELL, S.D. – With 20 seconds left, Nick Harden (Chicago, Ill.) dove to save the ball and passed it to Ace Zorr (Harrisburg, S.D.) who made his transition layup to secure the 82-76 victory for the Dakota Wesleyan University men's basketball team over (RV) Northwestern College on Wednesday night at the Corn Palace.
The Great Plains Athletic Conference showdown began with hot shooting for both teams as Koln Oppold (Sioux Falls, S.D.) drained a 3-pointer, followed by three-straight baskets from beyond the arc for NWC.
The Tigers (8-1, 5-0 GPAC) answered the quick start by Northwestern with 3-pointers by Sawyer Schultz (Emery, S.D.) and Mason Larson (Langford, S.D.) to regain a 13-11 advantage. The shootout continued as the Raiders (7-3, 4-3 GPAC) took a 22-15 lead after shooting better than 80% from 3-point range.
Schultz and Larson answered the call as they made consecutive 3-pointers to pull DWU within a point. After Northwestern made a basket, Zorr drained his own shot from downtown to tie the game at 24 midway through the opening half.
With just over five minutes to play in the first frame, Zorr converted on a layup, while Oppold knocked down a 3-pointer to give the Tigers their first lead since 15-13. Oppold and Jeffrey Schuch (Dell Rapids, S.D.) made back-to-back layups to push the lead to four points. However, Northwestern finished the half on a 4-0 run to tie the game at 39 after 20 minutes of play.
The Raiders came out quick as they opened the second half with a 7-1 run after a thunderous dunk by Alex Van Kalsbeek. Free-throw shooting helped DWU stay within striking distance as Schuch, Harden and Oppold made five free throws combined.
The Tigers made a concerted effort to send the ball to the post as they scored four-straight layups after finding mismatches.
Midway through the second half, Zorr reeled off a flurry of hustle plays to light a spark for the Tigers. He began with a blocked dunk attempt by the Raiders. On the ensuing offensive possession, Harden dished the ball to him for an easy layup. On the next defensive possession, Zorr drew the offensive foul by the Raiders to give the ball back to DWU.
With the score tied at 68 with five minutes to play, DWU put together a 5-0 spurt thanks to an Oppold 3-pointer and a Larson jumper. However, the Raiders would not go away as they pulled within a point with just under two minutes to play.
Following a missed layup, Larson snagged the offensive rebound and tipped the ball in to give the Tigers a three-point lead. DWU converted its free throws down the stretch to put the game out of reach to push its winning streak to eight games.
The Tigers held NWC to 14 points under its season average and to just 36.4% shooting from 3-point range in the game. DWU shot 51.7% from the field and outscored the Raiders 16-2 in bench points. The game also included 10 ties and nine lead changes.
Oppold scored a season-high 20 points and recorded eight rebounds, while Larson notched 20 points and five rebounds. Harden tallied a double-double with 13 points and 11 assists, as Zorr came off the bench for 16 points and three blocks.
DWU hits the road to battle rival Mount Marty University at 2 p.m. on Saturday in Yankton, S.D.
