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JAMESTOWN — The No.5-ranked University of Jamestown struggled to get production out of anybody not named Mason Walters and that showed up as Walters scored 38 of the team’s 68 points in an 80-68 loss to Dakota Wesleyan University on Wednesday, Nov. 16, at Harold Newman Arena.
Outside of Walters, the Jimmies shot 12-for-40 from the field, for 30%, with the Jimmies' second leading scorer being Cole Woodford with nine points.
“We just need better minutes from our other guys, put the ball in the hoop,” Jimmies head coach Danny Neville said.
The Jimmies (3-1, 0-1) sprinted out to a 12-2 lead, with the Tigers (2-2, 1-1) starting out shooting 1-for-7 from the field. The Tigers finished the first half, outscoring the Jimmies 32-16, shooting 13-for-30 from the field and 4-for-11 from three. The Tigers also held the Jimmies to three offensive rebounds in the first half, on which the Jimmies only scored two points.
“I’ve been here 10 years and seen a lot of good players, (Mason Walters is) as good as there’s ever been, and not just because he’s 6’9, he’s good because he’s good,” Tigers head coach Matt Wilber said. “He’s a tremendous rebounder and a lot of their energy comes from that. They're a very good offensive rebounding team and they get shots after that and it gives them confidence because they know they’re going to get offensive rebounds. So, we did a good job on the boards.”
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After heading into the break down 34-28, the Jimmies looked to respond in the second half but their defense betrayed the comeback attempt as the Tigers shot 66% from the field in the second half. The Jimmies were able to get it as close as 44-42. But the Tigers stretched the lead back out to double digits at 59-49 on a jumper from Koln Oppold later in the half.
“It feels good,” Oppold said. “We did what we came here to do. We know that’s a really good team, so we’re excited to get that win. It’s a really hard place to play, it’s tough to get a win here. I’m proud of our group for the way we responded. We came out down 9-0, so I’m proud of our guys for the way we responded.”
After the game, Neville did not mince words in challenging his team.
“You have to show up to games in order to win,” Neville said. “We didn’t have any heart, any emotion, we just were kinda there.”
The Jimmies look to rebound at 7:45 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 19, when they face Midland University.
DWU 80, UJ 68
DWU: 28 46–80
UJ: 34 40–68
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Points leaders:
DWU: Koln Oppold 30, Jakob Dobney 19, Kallan Herman 10
UJ: Mason Walters 38, Cole Woodford 9, Reid Gastner 7
Assists leaders:
DWU: Oppold 6, Dobney 2, Alan Kikwaki 2
UJ: Kjos 4, Woodford 3, Colby Vazquez 2
Rebounding leaders:
DWU: Oppold 7, Dobney 5, D’Andre Dennis 4
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UJ: Gastner 9, Walters 7, Kjos 5
