- Freshman Hunter Gawron leads DMACC with 23 points
- Sophomore Kaden Tate has 19 points and eight rebounds
- Bears clinch third consecutive ICCAC regular season championship
Freshman Hunter Gawron of Skokie, Ill., led four players in double figures with 23 points as the DMACC men's basketball team clinched its third consecutive Iowa Community College Athletic Conference (ICCAC) championship with a 105-88 win over Northeast (Neb.) Community College (NECC) February 18 at Norfolk, Neb.
Sophomore Kaden Tate of Pearland, Texas, scored 19 points and freshman Malcolm Bragg of Newark, N.J., and sophomore Rylan Smith of Lincoln, Neb., finished with 14 and 11 points respectively as the Bears improved to 27-1 overall and 18-0 in the ICCAC with their 21st consecutive victory.
DMACC, ranked second in the Division II poll from the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA), had previously clinched no worse than a tie for the conference championship and the Bears needed to win only one of their last three games to take the title outright. They got the job done with two game remaining on the schedule.
NECC, which fell to 12-12 overall and 8-10 in the ICCAC, gave the Bears all they wanted and then some in the early going. The Hawks overcame a 12-4 deficit behind a 16-5 run for a 20-17 lead with 13 minutes, 32 seconds remaining in the first half. DMACC took a 24-23 lead in a pair of free throws from Gawron and never trailed the rest of the way. The Bears pulled away gradually and led by as many as 13 points before settling for a 54-44 advantage at halftime.
NECC got within six points at 62-56 with just more than 16 minutes to play when the Bears pulled away for good. A 13-2 run capped by Gawron's layup got the Bears a 75-58 lead and they never led by less than 15 points the rest of the way.
Gawron and Tate helped the Bears to 50 percent shooting in the game. Gawron made eight of 10 field goal attempts, including 2-of-3 from three-point range, and 5-of-7 from the free throw line.
Tate, who leads the ICCAC in field goal percentage, made eight of nine field goal attempts and was a perfect 3-of-3 from the free throw line.
DMACC's 50 percent shooting came from 37 field goals in 74 attempts. The Bears made 10 of 32 shots from beyond the arc and were 21-of-28 from the free throw line.
NECC, led by 23 points from Sunny Singh, was 30-of-59 from the field for 51 percent. The Hawks made 11 of 25 attempts from beyond the arc and were 17-of-29 from the free throw line.
Tate's nine rebounds and seven apiece from Gawron and freshman Solomon Mosley of Chicago, Ill., led DMACC to a 39-27 advantage on the boards. Freshman Kavon Phillips of Davenport led the Bears in assists with nine and in steals with two.
The DMACC men's basketball team will make its final road trip of the regular season Feb. 21 when the Bears face Kirkwood Community College (KCC) at Cedar Rapids. KCC, the NJCAA Division II defending national champions, are ranked 15th. The Eagles have a 21-6 overall record and are 13-5 in the ICCAC. DMACC defeated KCC 85-62 when the two teams played Jan. 3 inside the DMACC gymnasium.