WNCC men defeat Cape Fear C.C. 78-67

                TWIN FALLS, Idaho – The Western Nebraska Community College men’s basketball team picked up the intensity in the second half in racing past a good Cape Fear Community College 78-67 at the Farmer’s Insurance Challenge in Twin Falls, Idaho.

                The win was the Cougar’s 11^th win of the season as four Cougars finished with double figure scoring. Marko Kovacevic, however, finished with a double-double in the contest with 11 points and 10 rebounds.

                WNCC coach Russ Beck said this is a good win against a team that went to the national tournament last year and lost to the No. 2 team in the nation this season.

                “This is a team that went to the national tournament and they have five or six returners on the team,” he said. “So, this is a pretty good win. They are well coached and they have pretty good players. I am glad that our Cougars got the win.”

                Beck said it was the second half that really opened up the contest. WNCC held a slim 38-36 halftime lead and pushed that lead to eight points early on back-to-back 3-pointers by Raul Delgado to start off the half. Cape Fear, who has the third leading scorer in the nation with Emmanuel Andrews, came back to cut the lead to three points at 51-48 before WNCC went on other run.

`“The first half we were a little bit stagnant and we were taking some bad shots even though we held the third leading scorer in the nation to just nine points for the game. We did a good job on zeroing in on him and learned our mistakes from CSI, so we did a better job on their best player,” he said. “in the second half, we came out and ran a little bit of motion and we got a little bit more movement and the shots started to fall.”

                Beck said the second half was a matter of runs and his team had just one more run then Cape Fear.

                “The game is a game of runs and got a couple runs,” he said. “Fortunately we probably had one more run than they did.”

                Raul Delgado paced the team with 22 points, four rebounds, six assists, two blocks and six 3-pointers. Also collecting double-digits was Du’Vaughn Maxwell with 18 points, five rebounds, six assists, and three blocks; Kovacevic with 11 points and five rebounds; and Brady Mason with 10 points, four rebounds, and four assists.

                Shooting was a big difference in the contest. WNCC shot 40 percent from the field in the first half and then blitzed the next for 61 percent shooting in the second half.  The opposite was true for Cape Fear, who shot 47 percent in the first half and then 41 percent in the second half. The big defensive statistic, however, was the Cougar defense did not allow Cape Fear to make a 3-pointer compared to four in the first half.

                WNCC will finish off the CSI Tournament at 3:30 p.m. today when they take on Raleigh Sports Academy. Raleigh lost 105-40 to the College of Southern Idaho in the late game on Friday.

WNCC (11-2)                      38 40 – 78

Cape Fear CC                     36 31 – 67

CAPE FEAR CC

Emmanuel Andrews 9, Terrance Hampton 6, Faronte Drakeford 17, Tim Wilkes 2, EJ Williams 11, Randell Jones 6, Rakeem Wilson 4, Landon Atterberry 12.

WNCC

Tahir Little 3, Du’Vaughn Maxwell 18, Raul Delgado 22, Marko Kovacevic 11, Terrance Motley 8, Brady Mason 10, Mason Smith 2, Marcus Johnson 4.

WNCC women get 22 from Sanders in 67-52 win over Colby

                 The Western Nebraska Community College and Colby Community College women’s basketball teams combined for 41 fouls in a contest that, at times, resembled more of a football game instead of a basketball game.

                In the end, the Cougar women fought their way to their 12^th win of the season behind Samantha Sanders’ points to lead WNCC to a 67-52 win in the second day of the Holiday Classic at Cougar Palace.  The contest saw seven lead changes, five ties, and 45 free throw attempts.

                The earlier came saw Air Force Prep roll over Hastings College junior varsity 71-36 as Erica Norwood finished with 25 points. Norwood has scored 54 points in Prep’s two wins in the Holiday Classic. Air Force Prep and WNCC will tangle Saturday afternoon at 3 p.m. in the final game of the Classic. The first contest pits Colby against Hastings College at 1 p.m.

                In WNCC’s contest Friday, the Cougars trailed the percentage of the first half as Cougar coach Dave Harnish said his team came out flat. The Cougars also couldn’t get into a groove offensively as Colby led by as much as four, 25-21 with three minutes left in the half before WNCC took a 28-27 lead into halftime.

                “We just don’t come out of the gate with a lot of intensity and get after people defensively, and knock shots down and have rhythm offensively,” Harnish said. “We have done that three or four times this year, and it was the same thing tonight. We just don’t come out with any aggressiveness in any game. We have to learn.”

                The second half was a totally different story for the Cougars as that intensity that was missing in the first half magically appeared in the second half.

                “The second half we come out and have good intensity and get up by 10,” Harnish said. “We do let them back in it when I thought Colby executed really well and knocked some shots down. We just came out and played with more intensity and desire to win the game in the second half.”

                The Cougars also found a groove offensively as they opened the half on a 15-4 run that was highlighted by a bit 3-pointer by Idil Ozbayrak for a 43-31 lead. Colby, however, fought back with a 10-0 run of their own that saw the Trojans slice the lead to 43-41 with 11:34 to play. WNCC bounced back with an 11-4 run that saw Jessica Aratani score five points. After that, WNCC kept the lead above six points the rest of the way.

                WNCC had just one player in double figures with Sanders scoring 22 points, including going 8 of 11 from the free throw line. Also contributing offensively was Ozbayrak with nine points, seven rebounds and five assists; Kelsey Doddridge with eight points and four rebounds; Leona Garrett with seven points and five rebounds; and Aratani with six points and nine rebounds.

                “It is the last game of the year [2011] and we just need to eliminate our mistakes,” Harnish said. “We just need to do a better job tomorrow against a good team.”

First Game

Hastings J.V.                       20 16 – 36

Air Force Prep                   37 34 – 71

HASTINGS JV

Kenzie Archer 7, Nia-Renee Simms 6, Rachel Walton 6, Hillary Knake 2, Morgan Lorenzen 3, Amanda Downey 4, Sydney Gartner 2, Jaime Blevins 2, Amber Rasmussen 4.

AIR FORCE PREP

Christina Gamble 4, Erica Norwood 25, Alex Guiraud 5, Samantha Fender 10, Saphira Philson 2, Ashley Cunningham 2, Danielle Jackson 2, Taylor Parker 10, Emonna Knox 11.

Second Game

Colby CC                              27 25 – 52

WNCC (12-3)                      28 39 -- 67                           

COLBY C.C.

Cheyenne Eisenhour 2, Brooke Bursiek 10, Morgan Rickwartz 3, Kalarina Popovic 7, Emily Torson 2, Shantydra Arnold 11, Liga Vente 6, Marie McAbee 7.

WNCC

Samantha Sanders 22, Leona Garrett 7, Lisa Durden 6, Kyra Peterson 5, ChaCha Ofoegbu 3, Idil Ozbayrak 9, Kelsey Doddridge 8, Jessica Aratani 6, Ajsa Zdovc 1.

WNCC women put five in double figures to get by Hastings College J.V.

                  The Western Nebraska Community College women’s basketball team put five players in double figures and created 19 steals in capturing an 89-42 win over Hastings College junior varsity in the first day of the Lady Cougar Holiday Classic at Cougar Palace Thursday evening.

                Idil Ozbayrak paced the team with 14 points, while also recording a team-high seven rebounds and eight assists. Also collecting double digits on the night were Samantha Sanders with 13 points, Lisa Durden with 12, Kyra Peterson with 11 and Leona Garrett with 10.

                In the first game of the night, Air Force Prep survived 67-63 in overtime. Action will continue Friday when Air Force Prep takes on Hastings at 5 p.m. followed by WNCC and Colby meeting at 7 p.m. The Classic wraps up Saturday with two games beginning at 1 p.m.

                WNCC coach Dave Harnish said his team played hard except for the last three minutes of the first half when they allowed Hastings to outscore the Cougars 12-5.

                “I was disappointed in the last five minutes of the first half as we got up by 23 points and then we gave up two or three threes late in the half and kind of let them back in it,” he said. “I was disappointed that we didn’t play for 20 minutes in the first half but we did that in the second half. I thought we played solid defense in the second half and the offense had rhythm. Besides the last part of the first half, I thought we played pretty well.”

                Harnish said that what makes this team tick is their defensive intensity and creating steals sets the offense in motion for some fast-break scoring opportunities. WNCC recorded 19 steals on the night and dished out 27 assists.

                “We need that [knack to get steals]. We need to create turnovers because we are not real great in the half court,” he said. “We always have to create turnovers but I think the defense has been solid all semester and hopefully it will continue the next two nights.”

                WNCC led 42-26 at intermission and kept playing like a fine-oiled machine. The Cougars ran to a 54-29 lead early in the second half and later 58-35. That is when the defense really picked up steam, holding the Broncos scoreless for about four minutes as WNCC went on a 17-0 run.

                The run was highlighted by five points from Peterson, who saw her first action in since the Thanksgiving tournament. Ajsa Zdovc also chipped on four points in the run. WNCC finished off the contest with nine straight points, six of which came from Durden.

                Harnish said his team will have to come out ready in the final two days to pick up wins against Colby and Prep to finish off the season on an up note.

                “We need games like what is coming up. We are shooting the ball a little bit better since we are back home,” he said. “But it will be two tough games back to back playing Colby and Air Force. But, the way we played tonight, I think the team will be ready and good things will happen.”

First Game

Air Force Prep 67, Colby 63 OT

AF Prep                                29 29 9 – 67

Colby CC              22 36 5 – 63

AIR FORCE PREP

Christina Gamble 1, Erica Norwood 29, Samantha Fender 16,Saphira Philson 4, Ashley Cunningham 7, Danielle Jackson 8, Taylor Parker 2.

COLBY

Brooke Bursiek 9, Morgan Rickwartz 5, Katarina Popovic 1, Emily Torson 4, Shantydra Arnold 7, Liga Vente 19, Marie McAbee 18.

Second Game

WNCC 89, Hastings 42

Hastings JV                         26 16 -- 42

WNCC                                   43 46 -- 89

HASTINGS JV

Kenzie Archer 13, Erin Vanderpool 3, Rachel Walton 5, Amanda Downey 4, Sydney Gartner 2, Abby Jo Schantz 2, Jaime Blevins 5, Amber Rasmussen 8.

WNCC

Samantha Sanders 13, Leona Garrett 10, Lisa Durden 12, Kyra Peterson 11, ChaCha Ofoegbu 9, Idil Ozbayrak 14, Kelsey Doddridge 6, Jessica Aratani 8, Ajsa Zdovc 6.

WNCC men capture 10th win of the season with 102-27 win over NCTA

                The Western Nebraska Community College men’s basketball team started slow against the Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture out of Curtis, but once the offense heated up, the Cougars recorded its 10^th win of the season with a 102-27 win over the Aggies Tuesday at The Palace.

                Hard to believe, the Cougars trailed the Aggies at one point and freshman Mason Smith said they did start slow, but it didn’t take long for the Cougars high-octane offense to crank up.

                “We started kind of slow, playing to the level of the opponent but as the game went along we came together as a team and made each other look better,” freshman Mason Smith, who finished with 16 points, said. “Every game that we play, we try to get better no matter who we play and we try to prepare for the next game. [Tonight] it was just try to get better. We wanted to show the ball [make passes] and play defense. I think we did a good job of that.”

                NCTA held a 3-2 lead early as Dusty Metzner buried a 3-pointer. After that, however, the Cougars went on a 19-3 run to take a 28-6 lead on an Allen Beck bucket. Luke Schweitzer stopped the scoring spree momentarily by draining a 3-pointer, but the Cougars finished out the half scoring 20 straight points, including seven straight from Smith for a 48-9 halftime lead.

                The second half was all WNCC as they led 72-13 on a Raul Delgado dunk and later led 91-18 on back-to-back buckets by Terrance Motley. NCTA kept fighting hard, however, scoring four straight points and outscoring the Cougars 9-6 late.

                The Cougars placed five players in double figures on the night, led by Sebastian Suarez with 20 points on 8 of 14 shooting. Marcus Johnson finished the contest with a double-double, collecting 14 points and 11 rebounds.

                Also for the Cougars, Smith finished with 16 points and seven rebounds, while Delgado had 14 points and Du’Vaughn Maxwell collected 10 points.

                WNCC’s height was a factor on the boards as the Cougars out-rebounded the Aggies 53-21. WNCC also force 25 turnovers, including getting 22 steals. Cal McCoy led the team with five steals.

                “The guys off the bench came in and played well,” Smith said. “We were able to contribute. Marcus Johnson played well for us and got a lot of rebounds and points.”

                The Cougars, however, didn’t play a perfect contest as they committed 16 turnovers. WNCC also shot just 53 percent (9 of 17) from the free throw line, while the Aggies were 75 percent (3 of 4).

                WNCC, 10-2, will next hit the road for the College of Southern Idaho tournament this weekend. The Cougars will face Cape Fear Community College on Friday night and then Raleighs Finest Sports Academy on Saturday to round out the first semester.

                Smith said they will have to play even better this weekend to finish off the first semester with three straight wins.

                “It will take playing tough defense, getting stops, and executing on the offensive end,” he said.

NCTA                     9 18 – 27

WNCC                   48 54 – 100

NCTA

Luke Schweitzer 5, Waylon Christen 4, Dusty Metzner 3, Jason Trausch 5, Pete Martin 6, William Leapley 4.

WNCC

Tahir Little 5, Allen Beck 6, Cal McCoy 2, Brady Mason 2, Du’Vaughn Maxwell 10, Mason Smith 16, Raul Delgado 14, Sebastian Suarez 20, Marko Kovacevic 6, Terrance Motley 7, Marcus Johnson 14.

WNCC defeats NCTA-Curtis 98-10 for 10th win of the season

                 The Western Nebraska Community College women’s basketball team received 18 points from Leona Garrett as the Cougars picked up their 10^th win of the season with a blow out win 98-10 over Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture Tuesday night at Cougar Palace.

                The Cougars also set two school records in the one-sided win. WNCC held the Aggies to just two second –half points and they also set the record for allowing the least points in a game.

                On a bigger note, however, the Cougars got a big left from freshman Teyshonnia Bealer-West who saw her first action of the year in pulling down a team-high 12 rebounds. Bealer-West has been sidelined with an injury.

                Garrett said that everyone played well and it was nice to see Bealer-West get into the game for the first time.

                “This is Tey’s first time playing this season and I think she did pretty good,” she said. “She worked really hard. She tried her best to do what she could and she did well.”

                Tuesday’s win was little in doubt from the get-go as the Cougars scored the first 12 points of the contest before the Aggies got on the scoreboard on a 3-point bank shot from Abby Sybrandt. After that, the Cougars went on a 30-0 run and led 48-8 at intermission.

                The Cougars second half defense was stifling as they scored 44 straight points for a 92-8 lead. At one point it looked as if they might hold the Aggies without a point, but NCTA’s Darae Hasper hit a nice five-footer with 2:12 to play to end the Cougars run.

                Garrett said the focus of the game was to get better after suffering two heart-breaking losses last weekend at the Air Force Prep tournament.

                “Our focus as a team was to run our offense and practice on our defense a little bit more, Those were mostly what we were planning on trying to work on during this game,” the sophomore from Brawley, Calif., said. “After our tough losses this weekend, we needed to get back into it.

                They performed well as they shot 50 percent from the field while holding NCTA to 12 percent. They also controlled the boards with a 49-23 edge. Bealer-West pulled down 12 followed by Garrett with eight and Jasmine Shaffer with seven.

                WNCC also forced 39 turnovers and had 39 steals. Lisa Durden finished with seven steals on the night, while Idil Ozbayrak had seven assists.

                The Cougars placed five players in double figures. After Garrett’s 18, Durden finished with 16 points, Ozbayrak had 15, Samantha Sanders had 12 and ChaCha Ofoegbu had 11.

                WNCC, 10-3, will be back in action this weekend when they host the Holiday Classic beginning Thursday when they take on Hastings College junior varsity. The Cougars will also meet Colby Community College on Friday before facing Air Force Prep Saturday afternoon.

NCTA                     8 2 – 10

WNCC (10-3)      40 48 – 98

NCTA

Abby Sybrandt 3, Maddie Thurston 3, Darae Hasper 2, Chelsea Nealon 2.

WNCC

Samantha Sanders 12, Tehshonnia Bealer-West 6, Jasmine Shaffer 4, Leona Garrett 18, Lisa Durden 16, ChaCha Ofoegbu 11, Idil Ozbayrak 15, Kelsey Doddridge 8, Jessica Aratani 4, Ajsa Zdovc 4.