Friday, April 04, 2014

March 7 -- WNCC men end season at regionals



                [March 7] STERLING, Colo. – After running by Miles Community College on Sunday 87-57 in the first round of the Region IX Tournament in Sterling, Colo., the Cougars couldn’t hold a halftime lead in falling to No. 6 Northeastern Junior College in the quarterfinals on Monday.
                WNCC led 32-29 at intermission, but let NJC go on a 19-0 run and scored just 20 second-half points in falling to the Plainsmen 81-52. WNCC ends their season at 18-14, while NJC advances to the semifinals to face Sheridan College.
                The other semifinal will pit North Platte against Gillette with the two semifinals winners playing for the title on Wednesday.
                Monday’s loss was unfortunate as WNCC played well in the first half as Joel Einfeldt hit a 3-pointer with three seconds left to give the Cougars a 32-29 halftime lead.
                The big difference in the game was 3-pointer shooting because in the first half, WNCC was 5 of 14 from behind the arc, while the Plainsmen were 0 of 11. The second half, well, was a different story as NJC lit up from long range, burying 8 of 10.
                NJC couldn’t miss, either, scoring the first 19 points of the half to take a 48-32 lead. WNCC didn’t score its first points until with 11:54 to play as Diante Mitchell hit two free throws. WNCC’s first field goal didn’t come until the 9:42 minute mark.
                WNCC shot just 32 percent for the game compared to 53 percent for NJC. The Plainsmen were 67 percent in the second half. The Cougars did convert more free throws than NJC, connecting on 13 of 23 compared to 9 of 17 for NJC.
                The Cougars also were close in rebounding, getting out-rebounded just 38-35. Youssoupha Kane and Brandon Morley led the team with six boards each.
                The Cougars had just two players hit double digits on Monday. Einfeldt led the way with 14 points, while Tyler Crosbie had 10.
                Monday’s game was totally opposite from Sunday’s win when Crosbie scored 25 points in the win over Miles Community College. In fact, WNCC’s effort on Sunday was the least amount of points allowed in the first round. Now, NJC holds that mark after holding the Cougars to just 52 points.
                Against Miles, the Cougars offense was lightning hot, netting 45 percent of their shots. The Cougars also connected on 7 of 16 3-pointers. What also helped the Cougars Sunday night was rebounding, where they out-rebounded the Pioneers 55-34, led by Kane's 15 boards.
                The Cougars didn't catch fire until five minutes into the game. Miles held an 8-4 lead and that was when the momentum turned. WNCC went on a 13-0 run to lead 17-8 behind 3-pointers by Derrick Bowers and Crosbie.
                WNCC finished off the first half with a strong defensive effort, holding Miles to not making back-to-back buckets. WNCC led 44-27 at the break.
                Just like the first half, the Cougars opened the second half with another big run, going on a 17-7 run that pushed the lead to 61-34. WNCC never let up as they went up by 33 points, 77-45 on back-to-back tom-a-hawk dunks by Jalen Griffiths and Julio Guity as they cruised to the first-round win.
                Crosbie led all scorers with 25 points, including five 3-pointers. WNCC also received 14 points from Brandon Morley, 12 points from Preston Christensen, and 11 points from Derrick Bowers.
                Miles had just two players in double figures. Tyree King and Quinn Smith each had 10 points.

Sunday’s Game
WNCC   44 43 -- 87
Miles     27 30 -- 57
WNCC
Tyler Crosbie 25, Preston Christensen 12, Youssoupha Kane 7, Diante Mitchell 6, DouDou Gueye 3, Jalen Griffiths 3, Derrick Bowers 11, Brandon Morley 14, Julio Guity 6.
Miles
Conner Smyle 2, Tyree King 12, Greg Spencer 4, Ryan McCarty 7, Teslim Idris 6, Jonathon Dogbo 7, Quinn Smith 12, LaSalle Massey 6, Emmanuel Olufemi 1.

Monday’s Game
WNCC                   32 20 – 52
NE Colorado       29 52 – 81
WNCC
Tyler Crosbie 10, Preston Christensen 6, Youssoupha Kane 2, Diante Mitchell 8, DouDou Gueye 1, Joel Einfeldt 14, Jalen Griffiths 2, Derrick Bowers 4, Brandon Morley 4, Julio Guity 1.
NORTHEASTERN COLORADO
Jamel Crocker 10, Odessa Lear 10, Arek Mawien 2, Duol Mayot 4, Isiah Cooper 5, Bronson Moton 5, Alex Dew-Merriex 3, Joe Dellenback 3, Jamel Peterson 18, Lake Reed 5, Joe Uke 17

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