(Editor's note: Miles Community College media releases)
MILES CITY -- The Miles Community College men's and women's basketball teams earned a lopsided sweep of Lake Region State College on Wednesday. The MCC men used a hot second half to pull away for an 81-57 win, while the MCC women took control in the second quarter en route to an 85-72 win.
Miles Community College men 81, Lake Region State College 57
A cold shooting first half turned into a big second half as the Miles Community College Pioneers turned a four-point halftime lead into a 31-point lead at the 10:00 mark of the second half to cruise to an 81-57 win over the injury-riddled Lake Region State College Royals on Wednesday.
Freshman guard Favour Chukwukelu continued his hot hand with 19 points on 7-of-10 shooting, including a 5-of-8 mark on 3-pointers, to lead four Pioneers in double figures. The lone starter to not score in double digits was big man Gedeon Buzangu, but he dominated on the boards with 20 rebounds and handed out six assists to make up for a cold-shooting night in the paint. Akeemis Williams scored 14 points, and two other Pioneers recorded double-doubles on the night. Deondre Northey had 11 points and 11 assists while 6-foot-6 ophomore Issac Abergut scored 12 points and grabbed 10 rebounds.
The Pioneers (15-9 overall, 7-2 conference) dominated on the boards 53-26 in a relatively clean game that saw only 19 combined turnovers. After a 36 percent shooting effort in the first 20 minutes, the Pioneers hit on 52 percent of their field goal attempts in the second half, including an 8-of-17 performance from 3-point distance. The Pioneers outscored the Royals 50-30 in the final 20 minutes.
The Royals (9-16, 3-6) were led by Myles Arnold with 24 points and 11 rebounds. Leif Nelson added 13 points and Beau Feltman added 10 points. Leading scorer Dion Ford did not play due to illness.
The Pioneers' next game is in Wahpeton, N.D. on Sunday afternoon.
Miles Community College women 85, Lake Region State College 72
Sophomore Claire Borot scorched the nets for 26 points and seven rebounds as the MCC Lady Pioneers took control in the second quarter and maintained a tie for the lead in the league standings with a convincing 85-72 win over Lake Region State College on Wednesday.
After a back-and-forth first quarter, MCC took control of the game in the second, outscoring LRSC 28-12. The Lady Pioneers then kept the Royals at arm's length in the second half, building a 16-point fourth-quarter lead with some balanced scoring and timely shot-making.
Borot made 9 of 17 shots in the game and was a blistering 6 of 11 from 3-point range. Freshman Lili Long added 21 points and four assists, while fellow Aussie Binta Salawu had a double-double with 17 points, 10 assists and six rebounds. Olyvia Pacheco joined in double figures with 11 points and six rebounds. The Lady Pioneers forced 27 turnovers on the night to offset getting beat on the boards 44-35. The MCC defense held the Royals to 34 percent shooting and in turn shot 53 percent on the other end while connecting on 10 3-point field goals.
The Lady Pioneers will hit the road for four out of the last five games, starting Sunday in Wahpeton, N.D., for a date with North Dakota State College of Science. The Lady Pioneers moved to 8-1 in league play and 16-9 overall.
