Trappers overtake LCCC 73-63

Posted 12/16/08

NWC climbs above .500 mark

In their final game before the Christmas break, the Northwest College Trappers defeated Laramie County Community College 73-63 at Hank Cabre Gymnasium in Powell last Friday.

The victory, though not a thing of beauty, …

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Trappers overtake LCCC 73-63

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NWC climbs above .500 markIn their final game before the Christmas break, the Northwest College Trappers defeated Laramie County Community College 73-63 at Hank Cabre Gymnasium in Powell last Friday. The victory, though not a thing of beauty, according to NWC head coach Andy Ward, put the Trappers at one game above .500 (7-6). It was NWC's sixth win in its last seven games.“We started out a little flat, but I thought we settled in and played better toward the end of the first half,” Ward said. After the first 20 minutes, the Trappers, who trailed early in the contest, led by a slim 37-34 margin. In the second half, they slowly pulled away, thanks in part to a solid rebounding effort, which was paced by Ricardo Bodra. The freshman from Brazil pulled down 19 rebounds, 17 of which came on the defensive end for NWC. “We put a lot of emphasis on rebounding coming into this game,” Ward said. “One of our goals was to get 60 percent of the rebounds, and for the first time this season, we did that.”As a team, NWC outrebounded LCCC 40-24. But whereas the Trappers won the rebounding battle, they struggled when it came to taking care of the basketball. NWC committed 26 turnovers while LCCC had only 16. Of the Trappers turnovers, 17 came in the second half.“We had too many turnovers in both halves,” Ward said. “Coming into the game, we had been doing a better job of taking care of the ball. But our turnover number was up a bit (against LCCC). That's something we will continue to work on and try to improve.”As for individual efforts, Casper Hesseldal led the Trappers in scoring with 21 points to go along with eight rebounds. He was one of three Trappers to score in double figures. Also with double-digit scoring totals were Julian Olubuyi with 19 points and Bodra with 14, which gave him a double-double on the night. Other Trappers contributing to the scoring attack were Mitchell Ackelson (9 points), Jordan Harris (8) and Anthony Harris (2). In the shooting department, NWC finished with a 29-of-53 effort from the field for a 54.7 percent shooting clip. The Golden Eagles, who hit 26 of 61 from the field, were led by Dionte Clayborn's 23 points. Isaac Jenkins and Travis Bostick added 15 and 10 points, respectively, to round out LCCC's double-digit scoring performances. “We had some guys step up for us,” Ward said. “Julian Olubuyi played well for us. He put a lot of pressure on their defense with the way he pushed the ball up the floor. That, plus having guys that do a good job of getting up and down the court, sparked us.”• Up next: The Trappers (7-6) will play their next contest Jan. 7 against Miles Community College in Powell. That 7:30 p.m. game will open the second half of the season and sub-region play for NWC. On Jan. 10, NWC will host Central Wyoming College in a 5 p.m. matchup.

NWC climbs above .500 mark

In their final game before the Christmas break, the Northwest College Trappers defeated Laramie County Community College 73-63 at Hank Cabre Gymnasium in Powell last Friday.

The victory, though not a thing of beauty, according to NWC head coach Andy Ward, put the Trappers at one game above .500 (7-6). It was NWC's sixth win in its last seven games.

“We started out a little flat, but I thought we settled in and played better toward the end of the first half,” Ward said.

After the first 20 minutes, the Trappers, who trailed early in the contest, led by a slim 37-34 margin. In the second half, they slowly pulled away, thanks in part to a solid rebounding effort, which was paced by Ricardo Bodra. The freshman from Brazil pulled down 19 rebounds, 17 of which came on the defensive end for NWC.

“We put a lot of emphasis on rebounding coming into this game,” Ward said. “One of our goals was to get 60 percent of the rebounds, and for the first time this season, we did that.”

As a team, NWC outrebounded LCCC 40-24. But whereas the Trappers won the rebounding battle, they struggled when it came to taking care of the basketball. NWC committed 26 turnovers while LCCC had only 16. Of the Trappers turnovers, 17 came in the second half.

“We had too many turnovers in both halves,” Ward said. “Coming into the game, we had been doing a better job of taking care of the ball. But our turnover number was up a bit (against LCCC). That's something we will continue to work on and try to improve.”

As for individual efforts, Casper Hesseldal led the Trappers in scoring with 21 points to go along with eight rebounds. He was one of three Trappers to score in double figures. Also with double-digit scoring totals were Julian Olubuyi with 19 points and Bodra with 14, which gave him a double-double on the night.

Other Trappers contributing to the scoring attack were Mitchell Ackelson (9 points), Jordan Harris (8) and Anthony Harris (2). In the shooting department, NWC finished with a 29-of-53 effort from the field for a 54.7 percent shooting clip.

The Golden Eagles, who hit 26 of 61 from the field, were led by Dionte Clayborn's 23 points. Isaac Jenkins and Travis Bostick added 15 and 10 points, respectively, to round out LCCC's double-digit scoring performances.

“We had some guys step up for us,” Ward said. “Julian Olubuyi played well for us. He put a lot of pressure on their defense with the way he pushed the ball up the floor. That, plus having guys that do a good job of getting up and down the court, sparked us.”

• Up next: The Trappers (7-6) will play their next contest Jan. 7 against Miles Community College in Powell. That 7:30 p.m. game will open the second half of the season and sub-region play for NWC. On Jan. 10, NWC will host Central Wyoming College in a 5 p.m. matchup.

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