Comeback falls short for JC men

The Jimmies rallied again late, but couldn’t climb over the hump.

Digging a hole has not been uncommon this season for the JC men. Sometimes they’ve climbed out, sometimes not. Wednesday, they came up a step short.

Dakota State scored the final four points of the game to hold on for a 66-60 win, taking the second of three head-to-head matchups against the Jimmies.

“I’m proud of the way they came back,” said JC men’s coach Justin Wieck. “They had every reason to fold, but they came back and nearly finished it.”

The mild-mannered Wieck was not on the bench for the final stretch after being assessed his second technical foul with seven minutes remaining.

“That was totally unacceptable on my part. I have to do a better job focusing my energy on my guys,” he said of the early exit. “It would have been nice to not give them those four extra free throws.”

But as often is the case, the team that lost its coach became energized.

It was an uphill climb all night for the Jimmies, trailing by 15 (48-33) in the second half.

The comeback did come, though. A 3-pointer by Mark Hoge made it 62-56 with 1:50 left and then two free throws one minute later cut the deficit to two (62-60).

But the Trojans, who improved to an impressive 19-8 with the win, got a bucket inside from Yusuf Vinson with 35 seconds left.

The Jimmies did not score on their next possession and two free throws by Luke Lamb iced it with 11 ticks remaining.

Lamb and Hoge tied for game-high honors with 19 points. Davon Thomas was one rebound shy of another double-double for the Jimmies with 11 points and nine rebounds.

It was the latest in a series of close losses to quality teams for the Jimmies. More close games likely are looming with the A.I.I. tournament just over a week away.

“We haven’t just played with good teams like (Dakota State), we’ve beaten them,” Wieck said. “We know we’re capable of beating good teams. We just have to keep improving. Hopefully we can go get one Sunday, and then put all our focus on the tournament.”

The Jimmies close the regular season Sunday in Mayville against the Comets.

Dakota State 66, Jamestown College 60

Dakota State 37 29 — 66

Jamestown College 31 29 — 60

Dakota State: Yusuf Vinson 13, Luke Lamb 18, Tyrone Gordon Jr. 6, Keith Lee II 5, John Lamb 8, Marcus Smith 11, Terrell Newton 5. Totals: 19-42 FG, Three-pointers: 8-18 (L.Lamb 3, Smith 2, J.Lamb, Gordon Jr., Vinson), 20-27 FT, 26 Rebounds (L.Lamb 8), 18 Fouls, 10 Assists (J.Lamb 5), 16 Turnovers, 1 Blocked shot (L.Lamb), 5 Steals (J.Lamb 2).

Jamestown College: Jared Sutherland 5, Dan Janu 6, Breshion Tucker 6, Davon Thomas 11, Mark Hoge 19, Taylor Newton 9, Jesse Behm 4. Totals: 21-53 FG, Three-pointers: 3-18 (Hoge 2, Newton), 15-18 FT, 30 Rebounds (Thomas 9), 20 Fouls (Thomas 5), 8 Assists (Sutherland 2, Tucker 2, Newton 2), 15 Turnovers, 2 Blocked shots (Thomas, Beny Collins), 5 Steals (5 with 1).

Records: Dakota State 19-8; Jamestown College 12-17.

Sun sports editor Dave Selvig can be reached at (701)

952-8460 or by e-mail at dselvig@jamestownsun.com

Tags: sports, jimmies, basketball