2 days Ago By Nathan Swaffar
MITCHELL — The Dakota Wesleyan men’s basketball team had no answers for the high-flying Concordia offense in a 95-84 defeat in Great Plains Athletic Conference play on Thursday night in the Corn Palace. The Tigers found themselves in a defensive conundrum as the Bulldogs found ways to score inside and out with efficient outside shooting in the first half and down-low domination in the second 20-minute period. ADVERTISEMENT The first half was all about the 3-ball.
The Bulldogs finished the first half shooting a staggering 75% from the field and were almost just as good from behind the arc where they shot 63.6% in the first half with seven made 3s. Jaxon Stueve was leading that charge with a huge first half.
He finished the first half with 19 of his 23 total points for the game and his efficiency from the field could not have been any better. He finished with a 100% shooting mark in the first half on seven shots, five of those were 3-pointers. He was a huge reason why the Bulldogs went into halftime with a 48-41 advantage.
However, with more defensive emphasis on the arc in the second half from DWU, Concordia immediately switched gears and began attacking the paint. DWU struggled to defend the Bulldogs’ interior play, especially against leading-scorer Tristan Smith, who finished with 18 of his 24 points in the second half. Concordia finished the matchup with 46 of its 95 points coming in the paint.
Scoring wasn’t the only area the Bulldogs had working down low as they also were the far superior team on the glass with a 31-17 rebounding advantage. Despite all that, the Tigers were within single digits throughout most of the matchup. DWU kept up with the scoring most of the game up until the very end as three-pointers and hard-fought baskets kept things within reach.
However, with no defensive rhythm to build off of, the Tigers weren’t able to mount any sustainable comeback despite little trouble putting the ball in the basket. DWU head coach Kevin Williamson declined to comment following the loss. Blaze Lubbers paced the Tigers with 21 points and four rebounds.
Jakob Dobney went for 15 points, Samuel Aslesen had 11 and Tampa Scott also finished in double-figures with 10 points. DWU finished shooting 53.8% from the field.
ADVERTISEMENT DWU (11-4, 4-3 GPAC) will be back in action next Wednesday, Jan. 8 in a road contest against Northwestern while Concordia (10-4, 5-3 GPAC) will have a short turnaround before playing Dordt on Saturday, Jan. 4 at home.
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