Your future, our focus
After beating Little Big Horn College 105-55, the Northwest College men’s basketball team soaked in the feel-good win.
Breaking a five-game losing streak, the Trappers overwhelmed the visiting Rams last week in Powell and then hit the road to top Miles City 82-75 on Saturday to pick up a second straight Region IX victory.
“Absolutely, we needed a win,” said forward Sukhot Bains, who contributed 10 points and 13 rebounds in the triumph over the Rams. “You need those types of wins.”
Northwest is now 11-8 after a disappointing road trip to Oregon over New Year’s and falling in its first two Region IX games.
In the victory over Little Big Horn from Crow Agency, Mont., two of the Rams players got injured and Northwest was so far ahead the coaches agreed to play running time for the final 10 minutes.
NWC put six players into double figures, led 65-28 at the half and shot .591 from the field. Except for Abdul Hafeez, who scored 27 points, Little Big Horn could not mount much offense. The Rams shot 29.8 percent from the floor.
Bains was such a dominant figure on the glass, it actually seemed as if he collected more than 13 rebounds, but he played less than 20 minutes.
“Another double-double,” coach Brian Erickson said. “He’s done the job for us there.”
The Trappers have suffered through dispiriting close losses recently.
“We had to get on the right path,” Bains said. “Everyone contributed. We had high energy on the court.”
High man was point guard Grantham Gillard with 24 points. His shooting included six 3-pointers. Power forward Levi Londale added 17 points with 12 rebounds, center Joel Maumba scored 16. Guards Jordan Rood had 13 and Levi Petersen with a career-high 10, joined Bains in double figures.
Londale, who is 6-foot-7 and weighs about 240 pounds, sized up the look of the skinny guys covering him and from game’s start called for the ball down low.
“I had to get the ball every time on the block,” said Londale, who almost never had to dribble to get close to the hoop once teammates found him.
Erickson loved Londale’s aggressiveness.
“He went after the boards so hard,” he said.
Peterson was popping his shots in from afar, nailing three 3-pointers.
“We know we haven’t peaked yet,” he said.
Dan Milota, the only regular back from last season, underwent minor knee surgery and will be sidelined for weeks. It is hoped the 6-7 forward can return sometime in February. Jordyson Telfort, a 6-5 freshman from Montreal, missed a big chunk of time because of his own knee operation, but he is back and poised to resume play.
In Montana, Gillard again led the Trappers in scoring, this time with 28 points. His long-range accuracy included five 3-pointers. Maumba added 19 points and 10 rebounds.
“We really made great improvement as a team against Miles City,” Erickson said of the victory. “We made adjustments, followed our game plan and managed the tempo of the game.”