Dawson Wins One North of Border
Men Defeat Briercrest College 114-62
In their final non-conference tune-up before starting Mon-Dak play on Thursday, Dawson Community College headed north of the border to play Briercrest College of Caronport, Saskatchewan and came out victorious 114-62.
Dawson was short-handed with three of their top players unable to play for various reasons. Their depth paid off once again as others stepped up to fill the void. They jumped out to an 8-0 lead in the opening minutes on baskets from Devin Collins, Man Man Baker, Kell Schwers and then Collins again. Briercrest came back with a 3-pointer and a lay-up to cut it to 3 points, but that was the closest they would ever get as Dawson went on a 26-4 run that started with two 3-pointers from Camron Dunfee and ended with a couple of traditional 3-point plays inside by Beau Santistevan. The Bucs opened up a big lead in the first quarter, scoring 34 points in the ten minute quarter to lead 34-15. Briercrest came storming back in the second quarter and outscored Dawson 20-17. The home team scored the final 6 points of the half to pull within 16 points at the break. Both teams were pretty even in shooting from the field with Dawson connecting on 39.5% and Briercrest shooting 38.5%, but Dawson had the advantage shooting 40.9% from 3-point range compared to Briercrest’s 21% and made all 8 of their free throws.
The Bucs improved their shooting in the 2nd half while Briercrest’s percentage went in the opposite direction. DCC shot a blistering 58.5% from the field and 46.7% from 3-point range while holding the hosts to 21% from the field while also forcing 23 turnovers for the game. The Bucs won the third quarter 30-17 with Collins and Schwers leading the charge. Dawson put it away by winning the fourth quarter 33-10.
Dawson posted six guys in double figures, led by 20 points from Kell Schwers (6'0 freshman guard). Other high scorers were Man Man Baker (6'0 sophomore guard) with 17 points to go along with 9 rebounds and 8 assists. Three guys had 16 points including Camron Dunfee (6'3 sophomore guard), CJ Nelson (6'0 sophomore guard) and Devin Collins (6'5 sophomore forward). Collins also had 9 rebounds and Dunfee added 6 rebounds and 5 assists. Beau Santistevan (6'7 sophomore forward) rounded out the double figure scorers and posted a double double of 10 points and 11 rebounds. Every player scored for Dawson in the balanced attack.
Coach Joe Peterson commented, "It was a unique experience for our guys since most of them had never left the country. Going through the border and playing with FIBA rules was an interesting change from what we are used to. Our guys handled it well and despite being without three of our main players, they battled hard and I think it will help us in the long run."
Dawson opens Mon-Dak Conference play on Thursday at 7:30 pm at home vs. United Tribes Technical College.
