WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- Kris Menning recorded a double-double to lift the Dakota Wesleyan University men’s basketball team to an 83-53 win over Concordia (Can.) on Monday at the Dick Versace Classic in West Palm Beach, Fla.
Menning, a Corsica native, had a game-high 22 points and 10 rebounds to lead No. 4 DWU (14-1). Menning made seven of 11 three-point baskets.
“Kris very much carried us in the first half,” Wilber said. “It was kind of a scrappy, garbage game for a little while. They are a physical team, and Kris kept us going in the right direction.”
This was DWU’s first nonconference game since Nov. 18 when it beat Valley City State University 96-76. Wilber said getting a break from Great Plains Athletic Conference games was a challenge.
“I know we ended up winning by a large margin, but it’s tough going into it because you don’t know what to expect,” Wilber said. “With conference teams, you’ve got a good idea of what you’re going to see. This wasn’t the case at all. We were in the dark.”
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The Tigers led 36-27 at halftime and exploded for nearly 50 second-half points. DWU shot 60 percent from the field and 67 percent from long range in the second half.
Jalen Voss added 14 points and Joey Mitchell had 15 for the Tigers, who shot 50 percent from the field, 53 percent from behind the arc and 71 percent from the line. Tate Martin, a former Mitchell Kernel, came off the bench to score three 3-pointers and dish out five assists.
DWU, which leads the nation in assist to turnover ratio, finished with 23 assists and 15 turnovers.
The Stingers were led by Mukiya Post with 11 points and four rebounds. The Canadian team shot 31 percent from the field and made just six of 26 shots from three-point range.
The Tigers are back on the court at 6 p.m. today for a top-5 matchup with the host team and No. 3 Northwood University Seahawks. DWU is 2-0 against ranked opponents this season.
The GPAC’s Concordia University defeated Northwood 86-70 on Monday, and Wilber said the loss will only motivate the third-ranked team in the nation.
“I think it’s going to be a really difficult game,” Wilber said. “I’m excited to see our game plan against theirs and see what we’ve made of. I think we can play a better game than what we did today.”
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DWU (14-1)
Jalen Voss 7-13 0-0 14; Luke Bamberg 2-4 1-2 6; Trae Bergh 0-4 0-0 0; Kris Menning 7-14 1-1 22; Joey Mitchell 6-11 1-1 15; Jon Vorwald 1-1 0-0 3; Tate Martin 3-5 0-0 9; Jade Miller 2-6 0-0 5; Luke Carr 1-1 0-0 3; Stephen Lee 0-1 0-0 0; Jason Spicer 2-2 2-3 6; Totals: 21-62 5-7 83.
CU (7-8)
Mukiya Post 4-11 1-2 11; Ricardo Monge 3-9 0-0 6; Ken Beaulieu 3-11 0-0 8; Gabe Riche 2-8 1-2 5; Jean-Louis Wanya 4-6 0-1 8; Frank Mpeck 1-2 0-0 2; Aamir Gyles 0-3 1-2 1; Gary Merisier 1-5 0-0 2; Inti Salinas 1-4 0-0 3; Jonathan Mirambe 0-0 0-0 0; Xander Jean 1-3 0-0 3; Nicolaos Maniatis 0-0 0-0 0; Clauderic Lemay 2-5 0-0 4; Christopher Doumpa 0-4 0-0 0; Totals: 22-71 3-7 53.
DWU36 83
CU27 53
Three-point goals: DWU 16-30 (Menning 7, Martin 3, Mitchell 2, Bamberg, Vorwald, Miller, Carr), CU 6-26 (Post 2, Beaulieu 2, Salinas, Jean); Rebounds: DWU 47 (Menning 10, Bamberg 7), CU 36 (Monge 6); Assists: DWU 23 (Martin 5), CU 9; Steals: DWU 6, CU 6 (Beaulieu 6); Turnovers: DWU 15, CU 8. Personal fouls: DWU 9, CU 16. Technical fouls: none.
