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Northwest College men’s basketball moved into the double-digit win column last weekend, finishing with a 2-1 record at the Salt Lake Community College Bruin Classic after defeating Utah Peaks Prep 104-73, losing to No. 2-ranked SLCC 91-74 and beating Real Salt Lake 79-69.
NORTHWEST 104, UTAH PEAKS 73Kicking off the weekend early on Thursday, the Trappers (10-3) matched up with Utah Peaks Prep.
Both teams battled early over the first seven minutes, before a 15-0 run by Northwest gave the Trappers a commanding 28-13 lead with nine minutes left in the first half.
Northwest continued to push the pace the rest of the half, heading into the break with a 45-33 lead.
A 13-5 run over the first four minutes of the second half quickly pushed the lead out to 20, giving Northwest breathing room early.
The Trappers continued to cruise in the second half, winning by 31 in a 104-73 victory.
Northwest dominated the paint, finishing with a 58-14 advantage in paint points while also out-rebounding Utah Peaks 61-32.
Seven Trappers finished in double figures led by 18 points by Mack Page off the bench, with David Ayala chipping in 12 points and 11 rebounds.
The Trapper bench outscored Utah Peaks 61-16 for the game.
SLCC 91, NORTHWEST 74After a quick victory on Thursday, the Trappers knew they would have their work cut out for them — squaring off with host No. 2-ranked SLCC (8-0).
Heading into the game coach Andy Ward knew the Bruins were successful in transition, and the Trappers worked early to slow down that transition game.
“They are hard to stop so I wanted to make it a lower possession game,” coach Ward said.
Despite SLCC jumping out early 6-0, the Trappers battled back and held the lead midway through the first half 18-16.
The two teams were tied at 29 with 1:40 remaining, before key plays gave the Bruins momentum going into the half.
Free throws and a 3-pointer before the buzzer gave SLCC a 34-29 lead and momentum going into the break.
That momentum carried over into the second half, with a 12-0 run giving the Bruins a 12 point lead early.
“Rebounding was a key for us, we did a really good job of that in the first half,” Ward said. “They got away from us in the second half with some putbacks, they got some offensive rebounds and they got the game going a little faster than I would have liked.”
Northwest was unable to recover from the quick run, not getting closer than nine points the rest of the way.
The Trappers shot 21-of-62 from the field for the contest in the 91-74 loss to SLCC’s 26-of-60, while remaining even with the Bruins in most statistical categories.
Davion McAdam led three double digit scorers for Northwest, finishing with 25 while Yannice Nlend finished with a 10 point, 13 rebound performance.
NORTHWEST 79, REAL SALT LAKE 69After the loss Friday night, the Trappers looked to recover heading into Saturday against Real Salt Lake.
Both teams battled early before Northwest captured the lead for good at 20-18 in the midst of a 9-0 run.
A late run in the first half pushed the lead out to 40-35 and gave the Trappers momentum going into the break.
Northwest held off early challenges in the second half, using a strong push midway through the half to make it a double-digit contest.
Real Salt Lake cut the lead down to single digits with 7:12 left, but did not get closer than seven points as Northwest finished with a 79-69 victory to earn the team’s 10th win of the season.
“We didn’t shoot the ball well from the field all weekend,” Ward said. “I thought we missed some easy shots that could have helped our field goal percentage. On the positive side we shot well from the free throw line, every game down there we were above 70% as a team.”
McAdam (17), Page (13), Christian Adun (12) and Andre Loigu (10) all finished in double digits for the Trappers.
FINAL ROAD TRIPNorthwest heads back on the road for the final time this semester, heading to take part in the Western Nebraska Community College Classic Friday and Saturday in Scottsbluff.
The Trappers matchup with host WNCC (6-4) on Friday night at 7:30 p.m. before turning around to take on Otero College (5-7) on Saturday at noon.
“(WNCC) play in a similar fashion to Salt Lake,” Ward said. “We are going to have to keep them off the boards and keep them out of transition.”
NORTHWEST 104, UTAH PEAKS PREP 73Offensive rebounds in ()Points — Mack Page 18, Will Hemme 14, David Ayala 12, Christian Adun 11, Davion McAdam 10, Juan Pablo Camargo Tellez 10, Milton Rodriguez Santana 10, Yannice Nlend 9, Antwon Logan 6, Andre Loigu 2, Kolter Merritt 2Rebounds — David Ayala 11 (4), Davion McAdam 9 (2), Milton Rodriguez Santana 7 (2), Mack Page 7 (3), Juan Pablo Camargo Tellez 5 (2), Yannice Nlend 5 (2), Christian Adun 5 (2), Andre Loigu 3 (1), Will Hemme 3, Antwon Logan 2 (2), Kolter Merritt 1Assists — Mack Page 5, David Ayala 4, Yannice Nlend 4, Kolter Merritt 4, Milton Rodriguez Santana 2, Andre Loigu 1, Juan Pablo Camargo Tellez 1, Will Hemme 1Steals — Will Hemme 3, Davion McAdam 1, Andre Loigu 1, David Ayala 1, Christian Adun 1, Kolter Merritt 1Blocks — Juan Pablo Camargo Tellez 2, Mack Page 2, Antwon Logan 1SLCC 91, NORTHWEST 74Points — Davion McAdam 25, Will Hemme 14, Yannice Nlend 10, Juan Pablo Camargo Tellez 9, Kolter Merritt 6, Christian Adun 4, David Ayala 3, Mack Page 3Rebounds — Yannice Nlend 13 (1), Davion McAdam 8 (2), Christian Adun 4 (3), Andre Loigu 3, Kolter Merritt 3 (2), Juan Pablo Camargo Tellez 2, David Ayala 1, Mack Page 1 (1)Assists — Yannice Nlend 3, Will Hemme 2, Kolter Merritt 2, David Ayala 1, Juan Pablo Camargo Tellez 1, Mack Page 1Steals — Davion McAdam 2, Juan Pablo Camargo Tellez 1, Mack Page 1
NORTHWEST 79, REAL SALT LAKE 69Points — Davion McAdam 17, Mack Page 13, Christian Adun 12, Andre Loigu 10, Juan Pablo Camargo Tellez 8, Yannice Nlend 6, Will Hemme 6, David Ayala 5, Kolter Merritt 2Rebounds — Yannice Nlend 9 (3), David Ayala 7 (1), Davion McAdam 5 (1), Juan Pablo Camargo Tellez 4 (2), Kolter Merritt 4 (1), Mack Page 3 (2), Christian Adun 3, Andre Loigu 1, Will Hemme 1Assists — David Ayala 2, Juan Pablo Camargo Tellez 2, Davion McAdam 1, Andre Loigu 1, Yannice Nlend 1, Will Hemme 1, Kolter Merritt 1Steals — Kolter Merritt 2, Davion McAdam 1, Yannice Nlend 1, Mack Page 1Blocks — Juan Pablo Camargo Tellez 1, Christian Adun 1, Kolter Merritt 1