When the Western Nebraska Community College and Laramie County Community College men's basketball teams hook up, it seems as if the games will be a one-score or overtime contest.
Tuesday evening at Cougar Palace, it was exactly that as the Golden Eagles converted 12-of-16 free throws in overtime to earn the 85-79 victory over the Cougars in a very intense contest.
WNCC drops to 1-1 on the season as they get ready for a big showdown with NJCAA-ranked Seward County Community College on Thursday beginning at 7 p.m. at Cougar Palace.
WNCC head coach Billy Engel said that his team just couldn't make shots when they needed to.
"We just didn't play good enough and they are a good enough team and we left them open too often and made us pay," Engel said. "They got to the free throw line a lot and that really hurt. Overall we couldn't make enough shots, couldn't get enough open ones, and just came up short."
Free throw shooting was a big key in the contest, especially the five-minute overtime period. The Golden Eagles connected on 29-of-47 from the charity stripe including 12-of-16 in overtime. WNCC was just 9-of-12 from the free throw line and 3-of-4 in overtime. WNCC was whistled for 31 fouls while LCCC had just 14 fouls.
Despite the free throw disparity, the Cougars had opportunities to win the game in regulation and regulation was a battle for all 40 minutes.
Camryn Dennis scored the first four points of the game for the Cougars, but LCCC came back to grab a 22-16 lead and led 35-28 late in the first half. WNCC trailed 39-31 at halftime.
The second half was where the Cougars stepped up as they outscored the Golden Eagles 37-31. WNCC scored the first six points of the second half to cut the lead to 39-37. LCCC came back with a 7-0 run to lead 46-39.
WNCC went on a 10-0 run behind a 3-pointer by Enzo Clouvel-Urie and buckets by Stephen Ovia and Biko Johnson to lead 49-46. The lead didn't last long as LCCC went on a 15-5 run to lead 61-54 on a bucket by Xavier McCord with 6:03 to play.
LCCC led 68-61 with three minutes to play only to watch the Cougars battle back as Carl Thorpe had back-to-back buckets to cut the lead to 68-65 with 1:34 to play. Johnson nailed a 3-pointer with 1:09 to play. The Cougar defense then forced a turnover and Thorpe hit the tying bucket with 40 seconds to play. WNCC had an opportunity to win it in the last seconds, but the shot was no good. WNCC then played strong defense on LCCC, thwarting their game-winning shot to force overtime.
The overtime period saw LCCC's Tristan Starks bury a trey and then McCord got a bucket to lead 75-70. WNCC tied the game at 75-75 on a bucket by Dennis and two free throws by Daniel Bula. LCCC came back to go up 79-75 on a 4-point play. Thorpe had an offensive rebound to bring the Cougars to within 79-77 with 45 seconds to play. LCCC then hit six straight free throws down the stretch to seal the win.
WNCC had five players in double figures. Johnson had 17 points with nine assists and three steals. Thorpe tallied 13 points while Dennis and Ovia each had 12 points. Bula finished with 10 points.
LCCC also had five in double figures as Starks had a double-double with 26 points and 10 rebounds including four 3-pointers.
LCCC 39 31 15 – 85
WNCC 33 37 9 – 79
LCCC
Tristan Starks 26, Ben Hageman 16, Jordan Reed 11, Jayden McCray 11, Xavier McCord 10, James Munlyn 6, Pedro Ellery 3, Brandon Tchouya 2.
WNCC
Biko Johnson 17, Carl Thorpe 13, Camryn Dennis 12, Stephen Ovia 12, Daniel Bula 10, Rodney Sawyer 6, CJ Johnson 3, Enzo Clouvel-Urie 3, Maurice Walker 3.