Norse Men Slip Past Harper; Milwaukee Tech Next

This story was written by Bay College SID Mike Pankow. Also click the thumbnails to see photos and video highlights. Also click the AUDIO button to hear the player spotlight interview with Joc Overstreet.

ESCANABA----The Bay College Men's Basketball Team (6-0) pulled away late in an otherwise close matchup against the Harper Hawks (0-6) on Friday night. The Norse stayed undefeated on the young season, ending up with an 82-67 victory.

Harper grabbed an early lead as they shot the ball well in the early stages of the game. They grabbed their biggest lead of the game after just four minutes of play. With the score standing at 10-5, it looked as though Bay was going to get all they could handle throughout the night.

Bay chipped away at the lead and kept the game tight. They finally were able to overtake the Hawks with about seven minutes left in the first half when Ashton Janke hit a three-pointer, making the score 19-17.

After Harper pulled back to within one a few minutes later, the Norse used a 9-1 run to open up the lead. After a flurry of baskets by both teams to end the first half, the home team held a 36-29 lead at the half.

The two teams continued in a back-and-forth fashion to start the second half. Though Bay never gave up the lead, Harper continually answered every advance, cutting the score down to a two- or three-point lead on multiple occasions.

The game would take a turn in the Norse's favor after the Hawks were able to hit a pair of free throws to make it 41-39. A 28-6 Bay run finally created a cushion for the home team. The Norse led by as many as 22 at one point, and were able to cruise to an 82-67 win at home.

Bay ended up shooting 47.4% from the field in the matchup, despite being four of 19 from behind the three-point arc. They got to the free throw line 36 times, and made just 24 of those attempts.

Harper also shot the ball well, hitting on 42.9% of their attempts. They also were not as sharp from deep, hitting just five of 17 from three. The Hawks shot twenty free throws on the night, missing on six of those.

Dewayne Thompson (FR, St. Paul, MN) was the leading scorer for Bay, knocking down all eight of his free throw attempts and totaling 15 points and two assists on the night. Jaylen Flaniken (FR, Troy, MI) added ten points and four rebounds.

The Hawks got a strong effort from Sean Beckman who shot the ball well (7 for 12) and ended his night with twenty points and seven rebounds. Austin Murray added 11 points and four rebounds, while Ethan Gutzmer scored ten points and grabbed four rebounds.

The game was the fourth of the day, and the second men's game hosted by Bay College as a part of their Fall Classic Tournament. Earlier in the day Milwaukee Area Technical College got a sizeable victory over Alpena Community College by a final score of 113-69.

On Saturday Alpena Community College will face off with Harper College at noon. The much anticipated matchup between Bay College and Milwaukee Area Technical College will wrap up the weekend and is scheduled for a 4 pm tip.