Mount Marty men beat Tigers 80-70
YANKTON — A significant edge at the free-throw line led to another quality home victory for the Mount Marty College men’s basketball team.By: Jeremy Hoeck, Yankton Press & Dakotan
- Aireus Stephenson
YANKTON — A significant edge at the free-throw line led to another quality home victory for the Mount Marty College men’s basketball team.
The Lancers trailed by a total of one minute on the way to an 80-70 Great Plains Athletic Conference men’s basketball win Wednesday in Yankton.
Not only did the Lancers (5-7, 2-4 GPAC) dictate the tempo all night, they dominated the free throw line — hitting 26-of-38 foul shots.
“The motion was really working for us,” said Jose Pena-Benjamin, who led with 24 points on 12-of-13 at the foul line to go along with nine rebounds.
“I felt like they couldn’t face guard us, and we really took control.”
Although MMC has just one player averaging double figures this season, it put four players to that mark. The result was the Lancers’ best offensive output in conference play this season.
Austin Harms (15), Joe Hieb (13) and Saladin Smith (12) all reached double figures for the Lancers, who shot 51 percent for the game.
The Tigers — hampered by 3-of-10 at the free throw line — opened the game with just one field goal in the first nine minutes, while the Lancers started on a 13-4 surge.
Mount Marty then built a 26-17 cushion on back-to-back buckets by Hieb, and took a 30-24 lead into halftime.
DWU was within four points at 52-47 with 5:53 to play, but couldn’t get closer.
The Tigers (5-7, 2-4 GPAC) received 25 points from Mike Lee, while Carde Pennington chipped in with 13 points. DWU shot 45 percent but hit just 1-of-11 3-pointers.
The visitors shot 53 percent after halftime, but a 36-percent effort in the opening half set the tone, according to DWU coach Shane Murphy.
“You really have to give Mount Marty credit, they executed well,” Murphy said. “We had some breakdowns late in possessions, but it certainly doesn’t help when you shoot poorly to start.”
What’s next?
“Well, we have to go back to the drawing board and work on a few things,” Murphy said. “Mount Marty played smarter and out-toughed us in every phase.”
MOUNT MARTY 80,
DAKOTA WESLEYAN 70
DWU (5-7 (2-4 GPAC))
Lee, Mike 9-14 6-10 25; Pennington, Carde 5-10 3-5 13; Stephenson, Aireus 4-13 1-4 9; Voss, Jalen 3-8 2-4 8; LaCroix, Bo 4-5 0-0 8; Miller, Jade 0-2 3-3 3; Menning, Kris 1-1 0-0 2; Bamberg, Luke 1-2 0-0 2; Maman, Danny 0-5 0-0 0. Totals 27-60 15-26 70.
MOUNT MARTY (5-6 (2-4 GPAC))
Pena-Benjamin, Jose 6-8 12-12 24; Harms, Austin 7-7 0-5 15; Hieb, Joe 5-9 2-2 13; Smith, Saladin 1-8 10-12 12; Odekirk, Scott 4-5 1-3 9; Sellers, Scott 1-1 0-0 2; Richardson, Chris 1-4 0-0 2; Fischer, Chevy 1-4 0-2 2; Payer, Tyler 0-1 1-2 1; Larsen, Jeff 0-3 0-0 0; Johnson, TJ 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 26-51 26-38 80.
3-point goals-DWUM 1-12 (Lee, Mike 1-4; Pennington, Carde 0-1; Stephenson, Aireus 0-4; Miller, Jade 0-1; Maman, Danny 0-2), Mount Marty Lancers 2-8 (Harms, Austin 1-1; Hieb, Joe 1-5; Richardson, Chris 0-1; Fischer, Chevy 0-1). Fouled out—DWUM-LaCroix, Bo; Voss, Jalen; Menning, Kris, Mount Marty Lancers-None. Rebounds-DWUM 34 (Voss, Jalen 11), Mount Marty Lancers 37 (Pena-Benjamin, Jose 9). Assists-DWUM 5 (Bamberg, Luke 1; Maman, Danny 1; Menning, Kris 1; Pennington, Carde 1; Miller, Jade 1), Mount Marty Lancers 15 (Harms, Austin 4). Total fouls-DWUM 31, Mount Marty Lancers 17.
Tags: sports, updates, dwu, basketball, tigers
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