Royals split pair at home

Article by Sam Herder, Devils Lake Journal Sports, published Nov. 23, 2015.

With an 8-2 mark on the season, the Lake Region State College men's basketball team is off to a quick start. The starts to some of its games, though, aren't so quick.

The Royals went 1-1 this weekend at home, with a 76-73 loss Saturday to Gillette Community College (Wyo.) and a 98-85 win Sunday against Jamestown JV.

In both games, the Royals needed some time in the first half to find its groove, but turned it on in the second half.

"1-1 on the weekend, we lost to a very good Gillette team and we battled," Royals head coach Jared Marshall said. "We didn't have great starts to both days and we have to figure out a way to shake that. Once we put together some complete games, look out."

Gillette Community College had a good combination of speed and length. The Royals struggled to create comfortable shots, especially in the lane against center Kavell Bigby-Williams

"The big, 6-foot-10 kid threw a couple shots early and blocked a few," Marshall said. "That slowed us down and we were hesitant to go in there. And we didn't shoot the ball overly well either. Their length and athleticism bothered us."

After falling behind 13-2, LRSC chipped away at the lead, but trailed the entire first half. The Royals brought it to 28-25 with a Noah Bosh three with five minutes left before halftime. A Ryan Clark jumper a minute later brought the Royals within three points again, but the Pronghorns responded with a 6-0 run.

Down 13 at halftime, LRSC came out with a much better start. The Royals kept within striking distance and got within one point off an AJ Nywesh three pointer with five minutes to go.

The Pronghorns didn't relinquish the lead and looked comfortable with a 69-61 advantage with less than a minute remaining.

But Nywesh kept the Royals in it. His three cut the lead to 69-64 with 44 seconds left. After some clutch free throws from the Pronghorns, Nywesh hit another three to make it 72-70 with 14 seconds to go.

Two more Pronghorn free throws was answered with yet another Nywesh three pointer, this one pulling the Royals within 74-73 with 3.6 seconds remaining.

Joel Thabize hit his two free throws a second later on the clock and Nywesh's half court heave hit the top of the backboard at the buzzer and Gillette preserved the 76-73 win.

"It shows his leadership role for this team," Marshall said on Nywesh. "Those are big shots. Not a lot of people hit those shots. AJ came through for us and gave us a chance to win at the end."

A slow start Sunday saw Jamestown JV hold a 45-43 lead at halftime. The Royals, though, decided to put the game away early in the second half. Dawson Peterson took advantage of a mismatch down low, scoring 13 points early in the second half as the Royals pulled away for the 98-85 win.

"Our size was there and we tried to get it inside to all our bigs," Marshall said. "Dawson really came out and exploited it. I tell you what, wherever he goes after this, he's going to be a steal. He's that glue that holds us together and he makes the difference with the little plays."

LRSC travels to Gillette this weekend for two games.