Bucs Win Big in Home Opener

After winning the Mon-Dak Conference Tip-Off Tournament Championship last weekend, the 3-0 Bucs got to play Sunday afternoon in front of their home crowd for the first time this season. Things were not going Dawson's way early on as the Rocky Mountain College JV team jumped out to an 11-2 lead in the first five minutes of the game, but once the tide changed, Dawson ran over the Battlin' Bears for a 125- 68 victory.

Rocky's hot start came from three straight 3-pointers and then a lay-up. Dawson Coach Joe Peterson went to his bench, and that move paid immediate dividends. Over the next three minutes, the Bucs went on their own 11-2 run to tie the game at 13. It started with a drive and lay-up by Sam Massaquoi, followed by a lay-up from Aries Lewis. Brandon Hymes then made two free throws and a short jumper before Massaquoi connected from long range. The starters came back in and continued the run with ten more points unanswered. Rocky would later get within two points, but a 15-2 run put Dawson firmly on top.

Justin Asi and Seth Amunrud led the way in the opening half with 13 points each. Amunrud was a perfect 5-5 from the field, including 3-3 from 3-point range. The Bucs forced 12 turnovers and outscored the Battlin' Bears 28-6 in the paint. Rocky did their damage from long range with seven three-pointers. Dawson took a 52-38 advantage into half-time.

The second half started the way the first half finished, with Dawson forcing turnovers and scoring at will. The eighteen point advantage turned to thirty points in the first four minutes and then forty points three minutes later. There were eight turnovers in that span and the Bucs made 15 of their 17 shots to blow the game open. Dawson dominated the glass by outrebounding Rocky 50-21 overall and 19-4 on the offensive glass. That led to a 28-8 advantage on second chance points. Dawson didn't miss many shots though, connecting on a scorching 70% of their shots in the second half and 62% for the game.

Dawson forced 25 turnovers and scored 45 points off turnovers. "Rocky came out and hit us in the mouth," explained Coach Peterson. "I liked how we didn't panic and
just kept competing. That second group was awesome and really turned the game around from the moment they entered. We weren't really prepared for their zone and we settled for too many jump- shots in that first half, but made some good adjustments at half-time. We are a good zone offense team usually, but we can't settle for jump-shots without getting the ball in the middle of the zone and attacking the basket. I loved how we played in the second half." Amunrud finished with a game high 21 points on 8-10 shooting. He also had 9 rebounds and 5 assists. Asi scored 19 points. Jordan Jasper had 17 points and a game high 9 assists to go along with 6 steals. Aries Lewis put up a double-double with 16 points and 14 rebounds. Kur Maler rounded out the Dawson
double digit scorers with 11 points. Ten Buccaneers finished with at least seven points in the game.
Drew Bowman and Ata Gultekin led Rocky with 14 points each.

Dawson has a quick turnaround as they host Central Wyoming College at 12:00 pm noon on Monday. It will be their Bounce for the Brave game as they welcome Washington Middle School, Lincoln Elementary, Wibaux and Savage schools to join together to honor Veterans in this special game. All Veterans get in for free to the game. DCC is also hosting a free breakfast for Veterans from 8:00-10:00 am in the cafeteria.