DCTC Wins District VII at CCC

Joey Johnson scored the game-winning bucket with 6.7 seconds remaining to lift Dakota County Technical College to a 68-65 victory over Central Community College in the District VII championship game at Raider Fieldhouse. CCC's Jerome Dixon attempted to tie the game with a three-point basket, but the shot was off the mark.

The Blue Knights opened the game on a 12-4 run, which was immediately answered by the Raiders for a 16-16 tie early on. The remainder of the first half was close as DCTC took a 39-38 halftime lead. In the second half, the Raiders appeared to gain the upper hand with a nine-point lead, while limiting the Blue Knights to one three-point basket over four-minute stretch. But DCTC slowly fought back and eventually tied the game at 65 apiece with time winding down. Then, Johnson broke the tie with a layup and a foul with 6.7 seconds left in regulation which forced the Raiders to make a trey for overtime. But Dixon's miss failed to hit the rim and the ball went out of bounds with 0.9 seconds on the clock.

"The reality is that guys take shots and they either go in or they don't, and his didn't go in," said CCC head coach Jerry Drymon. "This is agony of defeat and we did some things that really hurt ourselves."

Specifically, Drymon pointed out the 6-23 performance by his team from three-point range. On the other side, the Blue Knights tallied 11 three-point baskets. CCC also struggled at the free throw line (11-18), missing some key attempts near the end of the game. DCTC finished 13-16 at the charity stripe.

"It was a hard-fought win," said DCTC head coach Kelly Boe. "It didn't look good there when we got down by seven or eight late in the second half. We just found a way to win. We're excited about the opportunity to represent the district and go to the national tournament."

Ruben Fuamba logged a double-double to lead the CCC attack, with 15 points and 11 rebounds. Logan Fleming scored 14 points, while Deon Tabb (pictured) chipped in 11 points.

DCTC was led by Adreon Wadlington's game-high 24 points. Termaine Daniels scored a dozen points, while Martez Rodgers finished with 10 points. The Blue Knights also had a double-double performance as Cole Murray scored 11 points and hauled in 11 rebounds.

With the loss, the Raiders close out the 2016-17 season with a mark of 18-14.

"I thought we took good strides this year," said Drymon. "We made some good improvements and we played tough competition this year, including a division 1 school. I thought the guys got a lot better from where we started, which is what we always want to see. We won the region, but we just came up a little short [in the Division VII title game]. It's what happens in March."