- Freshmen Kiki Deng and Landen Norris lead DMACC with 15 and 11 points respectively
- Bears lead by as many as 34 points in beating IWTCC for the third time this season
- DMACC will face Iowa Western CC in Region 11-A championship game
A pair of freshmen, Kiki Deng of Des Moines and Landen Norris of Knoxville, scored 15 and 11 points respectively to lead the DMACC men's basketball team to an 81-56 win over Western Iowa Tech Community College (WITCC) in the Region 11-A semifinals February 28 inside the DMACC gymnasium.
The win was the 24th straight for the Bears, who improved to 30-1 for the season.
DMACC, ranked second in the Division II poll from the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA), overcame a 14-4 run early in the game to beat the Comets for the third time this season. The win moves the Bears into the Region 11-A championship game against Iowa Western Community College (IWCC) March 3 inside the DMACC gymnasium.
The Bears, the tournament's No. 1 seed, had a 10-3 lead with the game less than three minutes old before a 14-4 IWTCC run gave the Comets a 17-14 advantage. Four consecutive free throws from Deng, the last two with 10 minutes, 17 seconds remaining in the half, got the Bears the lead for good at 18-17 and they pulled away from there, leading 31-19 with 7:08 left in the half and going up by as many as 17 points before settling for a 42-28 lead at halftime.
DMACC outscored the Comets 8-2 in the opening minutes of the second half for a 50-30 lead and never led by less than 20 points the rest of the way. The Bears enjoyed their biggest lead at 75-41 with 5:46 to play.
DMACC shot 42 percent, making 26 of 62 field goal attempts. The Bears were 7-of-20 from three-point range and 22-of-27 from the free throw line.
WITCC, which closed the season at 11-20, was led by Zeb Svoboda with 13 points. The Comets made 22 of 70 field goal attempts for 31 percent. They were 6-of-28 from three-point range and 6-of-11 from the free throw line.
Sophomore Kaden Tate of Pearland, Texas, pulled down 12 rebounds to lead DMACC to a 51-35 advantage on the boards. Freshman Solomon Mosley of Chicago, Ill., had eight rebounds and sophomore Jayden Jones of Katy, Texas came away with six.
Freshmen Brent Taylor of Flossmoor, Ill., and Kavon Phillips of Davenport dished out three assists apiece and Taylor topped the Bears in steals with two. Tate added three blocked shots.
IWCC, seeded fifth, advanced to the Region 11-A championship game behind a 72-61 win over fourth-seeded Kirkwood Community College (KCC) Feb. 28 at Cedar Rapids. DMACC defeated IWCC twice during the regular season, 88-82 Jan. 14 at Council Bluffs and 97-67 Feb. 14 inside the DMACC gymnasium.
The Region 11-A champion will advance to the 2026 NJCAA Division II Men's Basketball Championship or the North Central District Championship ending the outcome of the Region 11-B tournament
