Wednesday-Harold Newman Arena, Men’s Basketball
Jamestown 110 Dordt University 107 (OT)
(uj.edu) Trailing by 23 points with just over seven minutes remaining in the first half, the University of Jamestown men’s basketball team rallied to force overtime against No. 23 Dordt (Iowa) University, then hung on to defeat the Defenders 110-107 Thursday evening at Harold Newman Arena.
Jamestown (8-4 overall, 2-3 Great Plains Athletic Conference) ended a three-game losing streak while Dordt (8-4, 2-3 GPAC) had its four-game winning streak snapped.
Dordt started the game by making their first eight three-point attempts on the way to a 30-10 lead at the 10:54 mark. The Defenders took their biggest lead following a Garrett Franken three-pointer that made it 46-23 with 7:14 in the half .
An 11-0 Jimmie run capped off by a three from Isaiah Dobson (SR/Stillwater, MN) cut the lead to 12 with just under five minutes in the half, but a three-point play by Josh Van Lingen put Dordt back up by fifteen.
UJ continued to chip away and closed out the half on a 12-4 run to make it 53-46 as the teams went to the locker room.
The Defenders opened the second half with three of their first four field goals coming from behind the arc to stretch their lead to 64-50 just over two minutes in.
Jamestown continued to play from behind, getting within two points at 89-87 after a three-pointer by Terrell Alfred (SR/Orlando, FL) with 5:28 remaining. The Jimmies’ first lead of the second half came at the 2:36 mark after a Brady Birch (JR/Melrose, MN) basket made it 95-94.
A Cade Bleeker three-pointer and a pair of free throws by Ben Gesink gave Dordt a four-point lead with 52 seconds left, but Dobson converted a three-point play to make it a one-point game. Jesse Jansma made one of two foul shots as the Defenders led 100-98 with seven seconds left. A driving layup by Dobson with 1.9 seconds tied the score at 100 and the game went to overtime.
Birch was the go-to guy in the extra session, scoring six of the Jimmies’ 10 points. His free throws with 0.8 seconds essentially iced the game as the Defenders were unable to get a shot off before the final horn.
Dobson finished with a career-high 30 points, one of five Jimmies in double figures. Alfred added a season-high 28 and dished out four assists. Also joining the 20-point club was Birch and his career-high 26, and he tied a personal best with 13 rebounds for a double-double. Brock Schrom (JR/Grand Rapids, MN) chipped in with 12 points and eight rebounds, and Jack Talley (JR/Sioux Falls, SD) was also in double figures with 10.
Bleeker scored 29 to pace the Defenders and was 6-for-6 on three-point attempts. Franken was 5-for-5 from beyond the arc, ending with 23 points, while Chad Barkema (18) and Jansma (11) were also in double figures.
The Jimmies host Dickinson State (N.D.) in non-conference action on Monday at 7 p.m.
