MITCHELL, S.D. – With the regular season coming to a close, the No. 16 Dakota Wesleyan University men's basketball team sits in fourth place on the Great Plains Athletic Conference standings, while Dordt University is in sixth. The teams are separated by just 1.5 games, while the Tigers are only 1.5 games out of second place in the conference as the teams clash at 8 p.m. tomorrow in the Corn Palace.
The Game
Both teams have experienced a slump as of late with the Defenders losing three of their last four games and DWU having dropped two straight.
When the Tigers and Defenders met in Sioux Center in November, it was an 80-78 double-overtime win for DWU. After the Tigers held a 39-30 lead at halftime, Dordt stormed back to force overtime after outscoring DWU 27-18 in the second half.
Nick Harden (Chicago, Ill.) led the Tigers, scoring 21 points and tallying four assists and three steals. Jeffrey Schuch (Dell Rapids, S.D.) also led the way with 18 points, four rebounds, three assists and three steals. The Defenders were balanced in their attack with four of their five starters scoring in double figures.
Harden leads the conference with 2.4 steals per game and ranks fourth in the GPAC with 17 points per contest. The Chicago native also ranks eighth in the NAIA with 48 steals on the season. Ace Zorr (Harrisburg, S.D.) has provided a spark for the Tigers off the bench. He broke out for 30 points and 14 rebounds on Saturday. Zorr averages 9.6 points per game and has scored in double figures in eight different games this season.
The Coaches
In his eighth season as head coach, Matt Wilber has coached 24 NAIA Scholar-Athletes and two CoSIDA Academic All-Americans.
Brian Van Haaften has been the head coach for the Defenders since 2018 and posted a 22-9 record a season ago.
The Series
The all-time series has been a close one. Dordt holds a 43-37 lead overall, with the previous five games being decided by one possession.
Scouting the Dordt Defenders
The Defenders are 16-7 overall this season and are coming off a 75-69 victory over Concordia a week ago. As a team, it ranks 11th nationally with 374 assists and has a 1.4 assist-to-turnover ratio. The Defenders average 82.5 points per game and shoot 49.9% from the field.
Garrett Franken leads the team with 16 points and 7.4 rebounds per game. He ranks 28th nationally with 170 rebounds this season.
For fans not able to attend the game, you can stream the game online with stats at https://portal.stretchinternet.com/dwu/. You can also listen to Tim Smith and Bob Sprang with the call at 105.9 FM or online at kmit.com.