- Sophomore Christian Haffner leads six players in double figures with 17 points
- Bears open the game with a 9-0 run and never look back
- DMACC shoots 60 percent from the field in the lopsided win
Sophomore Christian Haffner of Gresham, Wis., led six players in double figures with 17 points as DMACC men's basketball handed Iowa Central Community College (ICCC) a 95-64 loss February 3 at Fort Dodge.
Sophomore Zach Hobbs of Mesa, Ariz., and freshman Preston Thomas of Princeton, Mo., scored 14 points apiece for DMACC, sophomores Willie Guy of Cedar Rapids and Devin Wade-Henderson of Minneapolis, Minn., tallied 13 points apiece and sophomore Ryan Schmitt of Van Meter had 10 points. Schmitt, ranked second in the Iowa Community College Athletic Conference (ICCAC) in field goal percentage at 52.5 percent, picked up his fourth foul early in the fourth quarter and sat out the remainder of the game.
DMACC, ranked seventh in the most recent Division II poll from the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA), scored the game's first nine points and was never in serious trouble the rest of the way. The Bears enjoyed a pair of 26-point advantages in the first half, including a 46-20 lead at halftime.
ICCC, ranked 14th in NJCAA Division II, carried the momentum early in the second half, cutting DMACC's lead to 55-41 with just more than 15 minutes remaining and trailing 62-47 with 12 minutes to play. But the Bears steadily pulled away behind three-pointers and free throws, opening up a 79-51 lead with less than eight minutes to go. DMACC led by as many as 32 points in the half.
The Bears had one of their better shooting nights of the young season, hitting 34 of 57 field goal attempts for 60 percent. They were 10-of-22 from three-point range and 17-of-25 from the free throw line. Thomas made four of his five three-point attempts, Haffner was 3-of-7 and Hobbs was 3-of-5.
DMACC had a 44-22 advantage in rebounding with Wade-Henderson grabbing eight rebounds to lead the way. Sophomore Mark Bradshaw of Chester, Penn., and freshmen Jean Francois of Coral Springs, Fla., and Goanar Biliew of Denison had five rebounds apiece. Guy dished out a team-high six assists and Bradshaw added five to go along with a team-leading two steals.
The DMACC men's basketball team will be home to Ellsworth Community College (ECC) on Feb. 6. Game time is 3 p.m. inside the DMACC gymnasium. The Panthers are winless on the season at 0-5.
