Dawson Falls by Four Points to #3 Indian Hills
The NJCAA Division I North Central District Championship Game lived up to the hype. After 17 lead changes, #3 ranked Indian Hills claimed the lead with 3:05 to go and held on for the 70-66 win. The 66 points was 13 points below Dawson's lowest scoring game of the season. As the North Central champion, Indian Hills received an automatic bid to the NJCAA National Tournament. Dawson falls to 29-4 on the season.
"We gave ourselves a chance to win tonight, but just couldn't quite get over the hump," explained Dawson Coach Joe Peterson. "They are a really good defensive team and made it hard for us to score. I felt like we were on the verge of making a run all night long, but never seemed to string together consecutive stops and scores. I'm proud of the toughness we showed, battling up to the last second. This is a special group of young men."
It was a low scoring game from the start. Brandon Hymes stole the tip and took it in for the first points of the game. Five minutes in, the teams were deadlocked at four points each. Dawson went on a mini 6-1 run to take their largest lead of the first half at 10-5. The Bucs went up by five points again on a 3-pointer by Justin Asi, 18-13. The Warriors scored the next six points to regain the lead. The differential stayed within 1-2 points for the rest of the half until the visitors converted two free throws with 16 seconds to go to give them their biggest lead of the opening twenty minutes, 30-27. Both defenses held the offenses to low shooting percentages in the first half. Indian Hills shot 31% from the field and 10% from the 3-point line. Dawson shot 26% from the field and 33% from the 3-point line. The Bucs defense forced 11 turnovers. The Warriors outrebounded Dawson 31-18.
Aries Lewis scored the first points of the second half with a dunk for the Buccaneers. Lewis scored three more lay-ups to give Dawson the lead twice. Over the next ten minutes, the teams kept exchanging the lead. After a Seth Amunrud 3-pointer and a Sam Massaquoi driving lay-up, Dawson went up 44-40. That was their largest lead of the second half. The Warriors scored the next nine points. The biggest lead of the game for either team was a 52-46 Indian Hills advantage with 9:30 left. Dawson battled back with a dunk from Kur Maler and five straight points from Brandon Hymes. The lead changed hands four times in the final few minutes before Abdoulaye Fall put the visitors up for good with three minutes to go. Dawson didn't score in their next three possessions. With 1:29 remaining, Jordan Jasper came up with a big steal and a dunk to pull the Bucs within one point at 67-66. Dawson forced another turnover, but couldn't convert a lay-up. They got the ball back and failed to score again. Two free throws with 19 seconds left gave the Warriors a three point advantage. After forcing a Dawson turnover, Trenton Walters went to the free throw line and made one of two to give Indian Hills a four point cushion that stood until the final buzzer.
"We were just a play away from winning that game," continued Peterson. "One bounce, one call, or one shot could've made the difference. They are a really good basketball team, but so are we."
Six points was the biggest differential either team held all night long. For most of the game, the lead was less than three points. Indian Hills shot 40% from the field while Dawson shot 37%. From long range, Indian Hills only shot 21%. Dawson shot 32%. The biggest difference was 24 free throws for the visitors while the Buccaneers only shot 11. The Warriors bench outscored Dawson 45-17.
Kayden Nation scored a game high 15 points to lead three Warriors in double figures. Kur Maler led Dawson with 13 points. Seth Amunrud contributed 12 points and 10 rebounds. Brandon Hymes, Aries Lewis and Justin Asi scored 11, 10, and 10 respectively.
It was Dawson's first loss at home this season after winning their first 16 home games.
