Norse Open '22 With 106-74 Loss To Dakota County
This story was written by Bay College SID Mike Pankow. Photos and videos by RRN Sports. Click to hea Dewayne Thompson's player spotlight interview and post-game comments from Coach Matt Johnson.
INVER GROVE HEIGHTS, MN – The Bay College Norse Men's Basketball Team (11-5) opened up their second semester of play on the road against a Region 13 rival on Wednesday night. The Blue Knights of Dakota County Technical College (10-5) easily cruised to a 106-74 win.
Dakota County set the pace early using transition baskets to start the game on a 13-5 run. They would hold a lead throughout as the Norse struggled to keep pace.
DeWayne Thompson (FR, St. Paul, MN) finished at the rim to but the lead to nine midway through the first half, but it would be the last time Bay would be that close. The next time the Norse would score would be a Jacquez Overstreet (FR, Appleton, WI) three-pointer making the score 30-19.
Trevor Heidish (SO, Rosemount, MN) answered back by burying three's on the next two possessions, and moments later Janier Harris (SO, Burnsville, MN) knocked a triple of his own, making the score 40-19 in favor of the Blue Knights.
The deep ball barrage was a apart of a run by the home team in which they scored 19 unanswered points. By the time the Norse sunk a pair of free throws, the score was 48-21.
Dakota County held a 53-30 lead at intermission.
Despite their best efforts, the Norse could not slow down the runaway train that was Dakota County Technical College.
Justin Nelson (FR, Iron River, MI) put down a big slam dunk to cut the lead to twenty early in the second half. Moments later Overstreet nailed a shot from behind the arc making the score 65-46. Lamar Grayson (FR, Richfield, MN) knocked down a bucket, but the 71-49 score at that point didn't stand.
Dakota County took over after that point and ran away with the game. Seven Blue Knight players scored in double-digits, and they would take the 106-74 victory on their home court.
Grayson led the Norse with 16 points. Nelson and Thompson each ended the game with 12 points, while Overstreet hit three three-pointers and ended with 11 points.
Malik Spearman (SO, West St. Paul, MN) led all scorers with 19 points. Harris hurt the Norse with 18 points, while Manny Montgomery (SO, Bloomington, MN) was able to put up 14 points. Heidish and Dontray Johnson (FR, Red Wing, MN) each scored 11 points, , while Jayden Lane (FR, Cottage Grove, MN) added ten.
The Norse will look forward to hosting this weekend as they welcome Madison College on Friday evening for the first ever meeting between the two teams. On Saturday they will face Bryant and Stratton College (WI) for the first time of the year.
