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NJCAA Game 21: Davidson-Davie Community College 89, Des Moines Area Community College 61

chad dare chad., commercial-news, danville, ill.
·4 min read

Mar. 21—DANVILLE — Like most coaches, Davidson-Davie's Matt Ridge prepares a pretty detailed and complete scouting report on his opponent in each round on the NJCAA Division II National Tournament.

After watching Des Moines Area Community College roll past Pima Community College by 24 points in the second round, Ridge knew his team was in for a defensive challenge.

"Their starting five is as good as anybody we played all year," he said, noting that 6-foot-8 center Angelo Winkel had a game-high 36 against the Aztecs. "They are just a tough team to guard."

The top-seeded Storm proved their were up for the task, forcing the Bears into 20 turnovers as Davidson-Davie advanced into the semifinals with an 89-61 victory at the Mary Miller Center.

"I was really proud of how we got after them defensively," Ridge said. "I think our pressure might have bothered them a little bit. Getting them to turn the ball over 20 times was big."

And how did they do against Winkel?

The sophomore forward was held to just 13 points on 5-of-10 shooting and he was 0-for-3 behind the arc after making three in his team's second-round victory.

Ridge credited sophomores Nygie Stroman at 6-6 and Jacob Moore at 6-7 for containing Winkel.

"There were really physical all night, making it tough for him to get touches," Ridge said. "When he gets it around the basket, he is hard to guard and he can also step out and make 3s. It was really a team effort, but Nygie and Jakob had the responsibility of guarding him."

Moore, who is Davidson-Davie's leading scorer coming into the tournament, admitted the defensive end is just a little more important in postseason basketball.

"The farther you get down the stretch toward a national title, the more defense you have to play," he said. "It basically becomes a half-court game, so you have to execute your sets and get stops."

And what did he and Stroman do so well to contain Winkel?

"We knew he was a huge part of their team," he said. "I really wanted to get physical with him, and try to get his flustered. It kind of worked. I also have to give credit to my teammates because they were there to help me when I needed it.

"I fouled out, but it was worth it."

Strong defense was just half the winning equation for Davidson-Davie.

The Storm (34-1) were also able to open up a 11-point halftime advantage (45-34) with some good shooting led by Stroman, who had 13 of his game-high 20 in the first half including knocking down three shots behind the arc.

"In my four and half years in Chapel Hill, (North Carolina) Coach (Dean) Smith used to always say when the ball goes in the basket everything looks better and tonight, we made some really tough shots in the first half," Ridge said.

Thursday's victory was a small measure of redemption for Davidson-Davie, who lost to Des Moines Area (86-75) in the championship game of the 2021 NJCAA Division II National Tournament.

Winkel and sophomore guard Trey Lewis shared team-high scoring honors for the Bears (29-5) with 13 points each.

Davidson-Davie will play National Park College in the semifinals Friday night, while DMACC will play Parkland College in a consolation bracket contest.

Davidson-Davie Community College 89, Des Moines Area Community College 61

Des Moines Area (61) — Trey Lewis 5-13 0-1 13, Elijah Thomas 1-8 0-0 3, Trevian Carson 3-6 0-0 7, Victor Desmond 2-5 4-6 8, Angelo Winkel 5-10 3-6 13, James Glenn 5-9 0-0 13, Da'Shon Fisher 2-3 0-0 4, Demetrius Shakur 0-0 0-0 0, Ethan Thomas 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 23-54 7-13 61.

Davidson-Davie (89) — DJ Suggs 2-8 3-4 8, Nygie Stroman 8-11 1-2 20, Ethan English 5-7 3-4 13, Jakob Moore 4-15 0-0 8, Aden Taylor 7-7 0-0 14, Zyhir Sims 0-0 0-0 0, Mike Wade 2-4 0-0 4, Kobe Parker 0-0 0-0 0, Alex Reece 1-1 0-0 2, Frank Stockton 1-4 0-0 2, Tyler Johnson 2-3 0-0 5, Trey Fields 4-8 1-2 10, Baron Williams 1-1 0-0 3. Totals: 37-69 8-12 89.

Des Moines Area '34 '27 '— '61

Davidson-Davie '45 '44 '— '89

3-pointers — Des Moines Area 8-24 (Lewis 3-6, Glenn 3-7, Thomas 1-4, Carson 1-3, Winkel 0-3, Fisher 0-1). Davidson-Davie 7-16 (Stroman 3-4, Suggs 1-4, Johnson 1-2, Fields 1-2, Williams 1-1, Moore 0-3). Rebounds — Des Moines Area 31 (Desmond 7). Davidson-Davie 38 (Stroman 11). Assists — Des Moines Area 12 (Desmond 4). Davidson-Davie 15 (English 5). Turnovers — Des Moines Area 20, Davidson-Davie 12. Total Fouls — Des Moines Area 12, Davidson-Davie 14. Fouled out — Moore. Technical foul — Des Moines Area coach Blake Sandquist.

Records — Des Moines Area Community College 29-5 overall. Davidson-Davie Community College 34-1 overall.