- Sophomore Ryan Schmitt of Van Meter leads four DMACC players in double figures with 20 points
- Sophomores Mark Bradshaw of Chester, Penn., Willie Guy of Cedar Rapids and Zach Hobbs of Mesa, Ariz., score 17, 15 and 13 points respectively
- Win is the second of the season against 18th-ranked Eagles
Sophomore Ryan Schmitt of Van Meter scored a game-high 20 points to lead the DMACC men's basketball team to a 77-65 win over Kirkwood Community College (KCC) March 27 at Cedar Rapids.
The Bears, ranked fifth in the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Division II poll, defeated the No. 18 Eagles for the second time this season. DMACC also came away with a 75-70 decision Jan. 20 inside the DMACC gymnasium when KCC was ranked first in the NJCAA Division II poll.
Sophomores Mark Bradshaw of Chester, Penn., Willie Guy of Cedar Rapids and Zach Hobbs of Mesa, Ariz., scored 17, 15 and 13 points respectively for the Bears, who improved to 15-4 for the season.
The win gives DMACC the No. 1 seed in the NJCAA Region XI Basketball Tournament which begins April 6. Tournament pairings will be announced at the conclusion of the regular season.
The Bears never trailed after a layup by Hobbs with 7 minutes, 17 seconds left in the first half gave DMACC a 21-20 lead. The Bears led 30-26 at halftime and pushed their advantage to as many as 12 points in the second half. KCC closed to five, 62-57, with less than three minutes remaining, but got no closer.
DMACC shot 43 percent, hitting 26 of 60 field goal attempts. The Bears were 5-of-19 from three-point range and 20-of-23 from the free throw line.
KCC came away with a 36-31 advantage on the boards with Hobbs grabbing eight rebounds to lead DMACC. Sophomore Devin Wade-Henderson of Minneapolis, Minn., had six rebounds and Guy dished out a team-high 10 assists. Freshman Goanar Biliew of Denison recorded three blocked shots and Schmitt had two.
The DMACC men's basketball team will play Iowa Central Community College (ICCC) March 31. Game time is 7 p.m. inside the DMACC gymnasium. ICCC is 6-13 this season, including a 95-64 loss to DMACC Feb. 3 at Fort Dodge.