Offense struggles in DWU men's loss

LINCOLN, Neb. — Dakota Wesleyan University was held to a season-low in scoring and lost to Nebraska Wesleyan 63-48 Saturday in a Great Plains Athletic Conference men’s basketball game.

“We did not perform well on the offensive end,” said DWU head coach Shane Murphy, whose team committed 15 turnovers. “They did a good job capitalizing on our turnovers and that was a key difference in the game.”

The Tigers (13-15, 8-10 GPAC) were led by Jalen Voss’ double-double of 17 points and 11 rebounds. Aireus Stephenson had 12 points as Wesleyan’s only other player in double-scoring figures.

DWU was 7-of-28 for 25 percent in the first half and trailed 29-18 at halftime. In the second half, the offense started clicking more for the Tigers, going 12-of-25 from the field for 48 percent. But the Prairie Wolves outscored DWU 34-30 in the second half.

Nebraska Wesleyan (12-12, 7-12 GPAC) was led by Erick Thompson’s 16 points. Jonah Bradley had 13 and Trey Bardsley had 11. The Prairie Wolves had 10 turnovers to DWU’s 15 and both teams finished with 37 rebounds.

The Tigers are back in action at 8 p.m. Wednesday in a GPAC game against fifth-ranked Northwestern at the Corn Palace in Mitchell. DWU is in eighth in the conference with two games left in the regular season. The top eight teams in the league make the postseason tournament.

“We just have to do our best to get ready for the game ahead of us and play the best basketball we are capable of playing,” Murphy said. “If we do that, where we fall in the rankings will take care of itself.”

NEBRASKA WESLEYAN 63,

DAKOTA WESLEYAN 48

DWU (13-15, 8-10 GPAC)

Luke Bamberg 1-3 2-2 4, Jalen Voss 8-14 1-2 17, Mike Lee 0-2 2-2 2, Kris Menning 2-6 1-2 5, Aireus Stephenson 6-14 0-0 12, Carde Pennington 1-8 2-2 5, Bo LaCroix 1-5 0-0 3, Danny Maman 0-1 0-0 0, Stephen Lee 0-0 0-0 0, Jade Miller 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 19-53, 8-10 48.

NWU (12-12, 7-12 GPAC)

Trevor Johnson 2-9 1-2 5, Tim Schweitzer 1-3 5-5 7, Jonah Bradley 6-11 0-3 13, Bryon Thompson 1-3 0-0 2, Eric Jackson 6-15 0-0 16, Trey Bardsley 4-6 0-0 11, Andrew Mitteis 1-3 0-0 2, Trent Scheitel 0-4 1-2 1, Sass Karemae 2-3 2-4 6. Totals: 23-57 9-16 63.

Halftime: NWU 29-18. 3-point goals: DWU 2-11 (Pennington, LaCroix), NWU 8-20 (Jackson 4, Bardsley 3, Bradley). Rebounds: DWU 37 (Voss 11), NWU 37 (Bradley 6, Jackson 6). Assists: DWU 6 (Stephenson 2), NWU 15 (Johnson 5). Turnovers: DWU 15, NWU 10. Total fouls: 17, 10. Fouled out: None. Technical fouls: None.

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