JC men fall to Stritch in opener

Talk about it

The late-season momentum the Jimmie men built up at home could not be sustained in Missouri.

No. 2-ranked Cardinal Stritch withstood a first-half flurry from the Jimmies, but took control in the second half and pulled away for a 74-56 win in opening-round play at the NAIA national tournament on Thursday.

The Jimmies had played with and beaten highly ranked teams throughout the season, but couldn’t recapture the magic at Keeter Gym in Point Lookout, Mo.

“The team that played last weekend (at home), we didn’t see that team down here,” JC coach Justin Wieck said. “Our guys played hard, like they always do, we just couldn’t defend them well enough. We couldn’t get enough stops.”

The Jimmies (15-19) got down 11 midway through the first half, but reeled off 11 straight points with halftime looming and led 31-30 90 seconds before the break.

“We made a really nice run there. We made shots, got some stops and looked really good,” Wieck said. “We just couldn’t sustain that level of play long enough.”

After the Jimmies surged into the lead, Cardinal Stritch (31-3) scored the last five points of the first half and the first six of the second to regain control.

“There’s a reason they’re No. 2 in the country. They’re really good and we knew it was going to take a great effort, we just didn’t have it in us today,” Wieck said.

Mark Hoge poured in a game-high 21 points to lead all scorers for the Jimmies. It also sent the junior standout from Ironton, Minn., over the 1,000-point plateau for his career with another year to play.

Jared Sutherland, the team’s lone senior, returned from a sprained ankle and added 10 points for the Jimmies, including a pair of threes. Davon Thomas was held nine points under his average with six, although he did pull down six rebounds.

“It was a rollercoaster season for us, but this is a really good bunch of guys. They tried really hard today and all season in trying to grasp what we wanted to do and what it took for us to be successful,” Wieck said. “Lot of positives to take out of this. We played some of the top teams in the country and what it takes to get there. We’re going to go back to work and improve and start building to next season.”

Cardinal Stritch, led by 19 points from Derek Semenas’ 19 points, faces Bellevue, Neb., in the Sweet 16 today. Bellevue knocked off 15th-seeded Rochester, Mich., the same team the Jimmies beat in Jamestown Feb. 23 at the A.I.I. tournament to advance to nationals.

NAIA National Tournament

At Point Lookout, Mo.

Opening round

Cardinal Stritch, Wis. 74, Jamestown College 56

Jamestown College 31 25 — 56

Cardinal Stritch 35 39 — 74

Jamestown College — Dan Janu 2, Breshion Tucker 5, Taylor Newton 4, Davon Thomas 6, Mark Hoge 21, Jared Sutherland 10. Totals: 21-48 FG, Three-pointers: 6-15 (Hoge 3, Sutherland 2, Tucker), 8-15 FT, 23 Rebounds (Thomas 6), 18 Fouls, 8 Assists (Tucker 6), 14 Turnovers, 5 Steals (Tucker 2).

Cardinal Stritch — Tony Smit 13, Derek Semenas 19, Jeremy D’Amico 11, Nick Ford 6, Darren Moore 11, Mike Simpson 9, Isaac Quinn 5. Totals: 27-53 FG, Three-pointers: 7-19 (D’Amico 3, Semenas 2, Simpson 2), 13-16 FT, 31 Rebounds (Moore 8), 15 Fouls, 11 Assists (Ford 7), 11 Turnovers, 3 Blocked shots (3 with 1), 5 Steals (Smit 4).

Sun sports editor Dave Selvig can be reached at (701) 952-8460 or by e-mail at dselvig@jamestownsun.com

Tags: sports, jimmies, basketball