SIOUX CITY, Iowa -- Dakota Wesleyan University continued to turn heads on Wednesday.
After debuting at No. 18 in the first NAIA poll of the regular season, the Tigers picked up a big Great Plains Athletic Conference win over No. 8 Morningside College on the road. Dakota Wesleyan (10-1, 7-0) handed the Mustangs their second GPAC defeat of the season in a 75-60 victory.
The Tigers also extended their winning streak to 10 games, while snapping Morningside College’s eight-game winning streak. DWU also held the Mustangs (10-2, 6-2 GPAC) to a season-low 60 points.
Nick Harden led the Tigers with 24 points and canned five 3-pointers. Mason Larson added 18 points and collected seven rebounds. Jeffrey Schuch tossed in 10 points and also grabbed seven boards. Sawyer Schultz netted nine points and Koln Oppold contributed seven points.
In the first half, the Tigers shot 18 of 34 (52.9%) from the field. The first-half shooting percentage spurred a 43-22 halftime advantage.
ADVERTISEMENT
Morningside College, which was led by Trey Brown’s 15 points and 17 rebounds, chipped away at the deficit in the second half. The Mustangs cut the deficit to nine points on two different occasions. But it never dipped below that margin as DWU closed it out from the free-throw line.
The Tigers host Midland University at 6 p.m. Saturday at the Corn Palace.
Dakota Wesleyan 75, Morningside College 60
Dakota Wesleyan (10-1, 7-0): Ace Zorr 2-3 0-0 5, Mason Larson 6-9 5-8 18, Jeffrey Schuch 5-9 0-0 10, Nick Harden 9-20 1-2 24, Koln Oppold 1-6 4-4 7, Bradley Dean 0-0 2-2 2, Sawyer Schultz 3-8 1-2 9, Drew Cole 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 26-55 13-18 75
Morningside College (10-2, 6-2): Trey Brown 5-13 5-7 15, Zach Imig 4-12 2-3 10, Trey Powers 3-9 5-8 13, Conner Hill 0-1 0-0 0, Will Pottebaum 1-10 0-0 3, Tyler Vavrina 0-1 0-0 0, Aidan Vanderloo 0-3 0-0 0, Joey Skoff 3-4 0-0 7, Collin Hill 2-6 0-0 4, Ely Doble 3-6 1-2 8. Totals 21-65 13-20 60
Halftime: DWU 43-22. 3-pt FG:Dakota Wesleyan (S.D.) 10-23 (Zorr 1-2, Larson 1-1, Schuch 0-1, Harden 5-11, Oppold 1-2, Schultz 2-6), Morningside College 5-19 (Imig 0-1, Powers 2-6, Hill 0-1, Pottebaum 1-5, Vavrina 0-1, Vanderloo 0-1, Skoff 1-2, Doble 1-2). Rebounds: Dakota Wesleyan (S.D.) 34 (Larson 7, Schuch 7), Morningside College 46 (Brown 17). Fouls Dakota Wesleyan (S.D.) 16, Morningside College 16. Fouled out: Powers Pottebaum . Technical: none. Assists: Dakota Wesleyan (S.D.) 15 (Oppold 4), Morningside College 13 (Imig 5). Steals: Dakota Wesleyan (S.D.) 9 (Harden 6), Morningside College 4 (Powers 2). Blocked shots: Dakota Wesleyan (S.D.) 5 (Larson 3), Morningside College 2 (Brown 1, Powers 1). Turnovers: Dakota Wesleyan (S.D.) 10, Morningside College 11. Attendance: 300.
