In the final A.I.I. Tournament game of the day at the Civic Center in Jamestown, a defensive battle was predicted. #4 seed Ashford came into the game with the #4 ranked NAIA Div. II scoring defense at 57.4 per game. #5 seed Jamestown came into the game with a #19 ranked NAIA Div. II scoring defense at 65.3.
The statistics did not lie - Jamestown won the low scoring affair 54-50.
Jamestown improves to 14-17 on the year and earns the right to a semifinal match with 20-3 Rochester. Rochester is ranked 9th in the NAIA.
Ashford is denied its 20th win and ends the season at 19-12.
Jamestown outshot Ashford 42.9% to 37.7%. However, the Saints won the battle of the boards 37-26. Both teams netted 3 three pointers and both passed out 7 assists. The difference in the game might have been turnovers. The Jimmies forced 16 Ashford turnovers and converted that to 18 points. Jamestown commited 12, but Ashford only netted 6 points off of the Jimmie miscues.
Three Jimmies netted double figures: Mark Hoge 15, Davon Thomas 11, and Taylor Newton 10.
Thomas had 7 rebounds to lead that category, while Hoge passed out 3 assists.
Austin Uhrig scored 15 points. Uhrig is a freshman. The Saints collected 36 of their points from freshman or sophomores (Uhrig 15, Weston 5, Little 5, Overton 8, and Huber 3). They will be a strong team next season. Uhrig grabbed 7 rebounds.
Feb 22, 2013
Ashford (Iowa) vs. Jamestown College
Ashford (Iowa) (19-12)
Brandon Weston 2-5 0-0 5, DeAndre Lowery 1-5 0-0 2, Joe Lightfoot III 2-5 0-0 5, Vesteinn Sveinsson 3-11 1-2 7, Tim Huber 1-3 1-1 3, Kevin Gray 0-0 0-0 0, Joshua Little 2-4 1-2 5, Damon Overton 2-8 3-4 8, Austin Uhrig 7-12 1-2 15. Totals 20-53 7-11 50
Jamestown College (14-17)
Mark Hoge 5-14 5-6 15, Jared Sutherland 2-4 0-0 5, Beny Collins 1-1 1-4 3, Davon Thomas 3-11 3-5 11, Taylor Newton 3-3 4-6 10, Jesse Behm 0-0 0-0 0, Dan Janu 1-2 0-0 2, Andre Maund 0-0 0-0 0, Breshion Tucker 3-7 2-3 8. Totals 18-42 15-24 54
SCORE BY PERIODS 1st 2nd TOTAL
Ashford (Iowa) 27 23 50
Jamestown College 31 23 54
FG%: Ashford (Iowa) .377, Jamestown College .429. 3-pt FG:Ashford (Iowa) 3-9 (Weston 1-3, Lightfoot III 1-3, Overton 1-3), Jamestown College 3-12 (Hoge 0-3, Sutherland 1-2, Thomas 2-6, Tucker 0-1). Rebounds: Ashford (Iowa) 37 (Lightfoot III 7, Little 7, Uhrig 7), Jamestown College 26 (Thomas 7). Fouls Ashford (Iowa) 20, Jamestown College 12. Fouled out: Lowery . Technical: none. Assists: Ashford (Iowa) 7 (Sveinsson 3), Jamestown College 7 (Hoge 3). Steals: Ashford (Iowa) 2 (Weston 1, Overton 1), Jamestown College 6 (Tucker 3). Blocked shots: Ashford (Iowa) 1 (Uhrig 1), Jamestown College 2 (Hoge 1, Thomas 1). Turnovers: Ashford (Iowa) 16, Jamestown College 12. Attendance: 869.
Ashford and Jamestown will battle again on Saturday - in the women's bracket semifinal, Ashford and Jamestown will play at 3 pm.
The Valley City women and Mayville State women will play for the fourth time at 1 pm. MSU has won 2 of the 3 previous matchups, but VCSU won last week 85-79.
On the men's side Valley City will face Dakota State at 5:30. VCSU is 2-0 against Dakota State this season.
Jamestown will play Rochester in the other semifinal at 7:30.
Rochester traveled 19.5 hours to get to Jamestown.
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Late-game execution is critical come playoff time.
Friday night, the Jimmies came through.
Jamestown College scored on each of its final four possessions to grind out a 54-50 win over Ashford University of Iowa in quarterfinal action at the Association of Independent Institution tournament at the Civic Center.
The Jimmies, now just one win from nationals, play ninth-ranked Rochester College (20-3) of Michigan with the winner earning a trip to Branson and the loser going home.
"It's everything we thought it would be. Great atmosphere; Ashford is really good. … I'm real proud of my guys," JC coach Justin Wieck said. "We still got hope and that's what you want this time of year."
It was a typical tight, low-scoring tussle for the Jimmies.
After leading much of the game, Jamestown College fell behind 47-46 with three minutes to go and the offense in a rut. But after a timeout, Mark Hoge drove to the hole, made a spot-on pass to Jared Sutherland, who was open behind the arc and the Jimmies' lone senior buried a clutch triple.
"Hoge made a great pass," said Sutherland of the key 3. "Coach always tells us if we're open to shoot it. That corner spot, I feel comfortable there. … It felt good to hit that shot."
Jamestown College never trailed again after Sutherland's clutch delivery.
Brandon Weston made it interesting with a 3 to bring the Saints within 50-47 with 90 seconds left. But Taylor Newton answered with a tough runner in the lane. After a stop defensively, Newton stepped up and knocked down two free throws with 16.5 points left to put the Jimmies up 54-50.
"This is postseason basketball. It's going to come down to the last five minutes and then who makes the right plays," Wieck said. "I thought Mark made some really key plays not even scoring, just making the right play. Reading the defense and then making the right pass. Once to Jared, then another to Taylor for the runner and then Davon for the free throws. … It made all the difference."
Open looks were few and far between for both teams.
The Jimmies held Ashford, which averages nearly 70, to just two 23-point halves.
"I thought we had a good game plan coming in, but then for our guys to come out and execute it, really, that's why we're still alive," Wieck said.
Hoge led the Jimmies with 15 points and three assists. Thomas added 11 and seven rebounds and Newton was in double figures with 10.
It's a quick turnaround for the Jimmies to face one of the top teams in NAIA Division II. Wieck was hoping for a long night of film study and he got it.
"You go watch tape till 4 a.m., maybe get a little sleep and get right back to it," Wieck said. "This is what it's all about. We have a chance and we get to do it at home. What more could we ask for?"
Courtesy of Dave Selvig, Jamestown Sun,2/23/13
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Men's A.I.I. Tournament Preview
Courtesy of Dave Selvig, Jamestown Sun, 2/22/13
It's been an up and down season for the Jamestown College men's basketball team.
Despite a sub-.500 record, the Jimmies have played plenty of good basketball this season. No better example of that came at the Civic Center Nov. 30 when they had the No. 1 team in the NAIA — William Penn of Iowa — on the ropes before the 28-1 Statesmen escaped with a three-point win.
The Jimmies (13-17) are hoping to bottle some of that magic this weekend as host of the Association of Independent Institutions tournament, where they need two wins to return to nationals.
"It's right there in front of us," said JC men's coach Justin Wieck. "There's no easy game this time of season and there shouldn't be. Every team is talented, athletic, and like us, hungry to keep playing.
"It's going to be a great weekend of basketball with six very good men's and women's basketball teams coming to town."
To advance, the fifth-seeded Jimmies will have to beat No. 4 seed Ashford, Iowa (19-11) tonight and then knock off ninth-ranked nationally and top overall seed this weekend in Rochester, Mich., (20-3) Saturday night.
"We've had a good week of preparation. I feel really good about the work our guys have put in and I feel like we're ready," Wieck said. "Ashford is really talented, really athletic. Defensively, they make it hard for you, but you wouldn't expect anything less. Everybody is going to be good."
A big key for the Jimmies is getting offensive production outside of junior stars Mark Hoge and Davon Thomas. They've also done well in tournament formats, going 4-0 with titles in Wisconsin November and here in January.
This field is the toughest of the three, but playing at home will help. Wieck is expecting an entertaining tournament, but would enjoy it much more if his team can hang around.
"There's really good teams from all over the country. It's a great opportunity to go to the Civic Center and see some really good basketball," Wieck said. "Obviously, we want to stick around as long as we can and give our fans something to cheer about."
Association of Independent Institutions Men's Tournament
At Jamestown Civic Center
Friday-Sunday
Team capsules
No. 1 Rochester (Mich.)
Record: 20-3
Coach: Klint Pleasant (2nd year)
Enrollment: 1,084.
Key players: Dramell Hogan (19 ppg, 7 rpg); Drew Maynard (17 ppg, 7 rpg); Stavros Schizas (12 ppg); Brad Norman (10 ppg).
Season so far: The Warriors score a bunch (76 ppg) and don't give up many (54 ppg). They're ranked No. 9 nationally and are a strong No. 1 seed.
No. 2 Valley City State
Record: 21-7
Coach: Jeff Kaminsky (8th year)
Enrollment: 1,362
Key players: Sekani Milligen (18.5 ppg), Gus Kueber (12 ppg), Aaron Duske (11 ppg); John Raquel (10 ppg); A.J. McDonald (8 ppg).
Season so far: The Vikings have spent the entire season in the NAIA top 25 and are currently 23rd. Milligen is one of the best players in the country. He could carry the Vikings a long way.
No. 3 Dakota State
Record: 19-9
Coach: Gary Garner (4th year)
Enrollment: 3,102
Key players: Tyrone Gordon Jr. (14 ppg, 4 apg); John Lamb (12 ppg); Luke Lamb (12 ppg); Yusuf Vinson (11 ppg, 8 rpg).
Season so far: Dakota State has been in and out of the top 25 this season. The Trojans are certainly capable of getting back to nationals after winning the A.I.I. tournament as host last season.
No. 4 Ashford (Iowa)
Record: 19-11
Coach: Oliver Drake (3rd year)
Enrollment: 968
Key players: DeAndre Lowery (14 ppg, 4.6 apg); Vesteinn Sveinsson (12 ppg, 5 rpg); Brandon Weston (10 ppg).
Season so far: The Saints make it hard to score, allowing only 57 points per game. They're balanced offensively with seven players averaging five points or more. They also take care of the ball with a plus-minus turnover ratio of 363-487.
No. 5 Jamestown College
Record: 13-17
Coach: Justin Wieck (1st year)
Enrollment: 967
Key players: Mark Hoge (17.5 ppg, 5 rpg, 3 apg); Davon Thomas (15 ppg, 7 rpg); Breshion Tucker (8 ppg, 4 apg); Taylor Newton (8 ppg).
Season so far: The Jimmies are a dangerous No. 5 seed. A big key will be getting points from someone other than Hoge and Thomas. Tucker had a career-best 24 points in a win over Mayville State, while Taylor Newton had 16. They'll need more of that tonight to advance.
No. 6 Northern New Mexico
Record: 10-17
Coach: Ryan Cordova (3rd year)
Enrollment: 3,873
Key players: Brandon Jones (12 ppg); Matthew Brito (9.5 ppg); Gabriel Martinez (9 ppg).
Season so far: Don't be fooled by the Eagles' record. They beat the Jimmies, swept Mayville State, split with South Dakota Mines and played Valley City State tough once. They have extreme offensive balance with 11 players averaging five points or more.
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