- Freshman Kiki Deng leads DMACC with 33 points
- Freshman Hunter Gawron adds 10 points
- Bears pull away in the final four minutes
Freshman Kiki Deng of Des Moines scored a game-high 33 points as the DMACC men's basketball team survived a scare from Iowa Western Community College (IWCC) for an 88-82 win January 14 at Council Bluffs.
The win extended the Bears' winning streak to 11 consecutive games and they improved to 17-1 overall and stayed unbeaten in the Iowa Community College Athletic Conference (ICCAC) at 9-0.
Deng got his 33 points from 9-of-13 shooting from the field, including going 2-of-4 from three-point range, and he made 13 of 15 free throw attempts.
DMACC freshman Hunter Gawron of Skokie, Ill., joined Deng in double figures with 10 points.
DMACC, ranked second in the Division II poll from the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) trailed throughout the first half after IWCC, ranked 11th, pulled away from a 7-7 tie with an 14-4 run that gave the Reivers a 21-11 lead with just more than 11 minutes remaining in the opening half.
IWCC led by as many as 14 points later in the half and had a 39-26 lead before a 10-3 run by DMACC got the Bears to within six at halftime, 42-36. Deng scored seven of the 10 points on a pair of free throws, a three-pointer and a regular basket and freshman Kayon Phillips of Davenport added a three-pointer.
Neither team led by more than four points in the second half until a 5-0 run put IWCC up 73-66 with just more than six minutes to play. DMACC fought back to tie the game at 74 on a three-pointer by sophomore Rylan Smith of Lincoln, Neb., and then took the lead for good at 76-74 on Deng's layup with just less than four minutes remaining. A three-pointer from Deng at the 1 minute, 40 second mark of the half put DMACC up 83-76 and a free throw from Smith made it an 84-77 game with 1:04 to play.
A jumper from sophomore Kaden Tate of Pearland, Texas, gave the Bears an 86-80 lead with 33 seconds left and Phillips closed out the win with a pair of free throws with two seconds remaining.
DMACC shot 44 percent, hitting 30 of 68 field goal attempts. The Bears were 10-of-28 from three-point range and 18-of-29 from the free throw line.
IWCC, led by 25 points from Judah Vignery and 24 from J.P. Sumo, made 23 of 69 field goal attempts for 38 percent. The Reivers were 6-of-22 from three-point range and 30-of-37 from the free throw line.
DMACC had a 37-35 advantage on the boards with Tate's 14 rebounds and seven from Gawron leading the Bears. Deng dished out a team-high three assists and Tate led the Bears in steals with three.
The DMACC men's basketball team faces another ranked opponent Jan. 17 when the Bears play Iowa Central Community College at Fort Dodge. The Tritons are 16-2 overall and 7-2 in the ICCAC. They are ranked fifth in the NJCAA Division II poll.