Weekend Split in Iowa

Dec. 10, 2018, Sterling, Colo. — In a recent trip to the east, the Northeastern Plainsmen traveled to Council Bluffs, Iowa to compete against the Iowa Central Tritons and the Iowa Western Reivers. The men knew they had a tough weekend on their hands, and getting one win on the weekend was good considering they were playing two tough teams. 

The first game against the Tritons, the Plainsmen exchanged points throughout the first five minutes before they were able to get their first real lead of the game. At the 12-minute mark, Northeastern had a nine-point lead of 18-9. It wasn't before long until Iowa Central made a run to take the 25-23 lead. The rest of the half, both teams took turns leading, but as the half ended, the Plainsmen had the slight advantage over the Tritons, leading 42-38. In the second, Northeastern took a little while to get going, but halfway through the second they had a 10-point lead, 60-50. The Plainsmen kept that lead all throughout the half. The Tritons tried to make a late push, but Northeastern kept them at bay and won 84-78. 

The next day Northeastern played the home team, the Iowa Western Reivers. Last time these teams met in Sterling, Northeastern only came up short by three points. Knowing that they were now on the Reivers home court, they had their work cut out for them. Iowa Western came out and took an early 10-point lead in the first six minutes of the game to lead 14-4. The Plainsmen managed to get some of those points back before half, but the Reivers still led 36-28 at halftime. In the second, the Plainsmen hit a few big shots to bring the score within three points as Ryan Bagley drained a few three-pointers. With the score now reading 43-41, Iowa Western called a timeout to cool off the Plainsmen. Northeastern was able to keep the game within reach for the next few minutes, but a few unanswered shots allowed the Reivers to slowly inch away. Northeastern was able to close the gap, but Iowa Western kept capitalizing on turnovers and missed shots by the Plainsmen, allowing them to widen their lead. Northeastern eventually lost to the Reivers 76-68, but the score did not reflect how close the game was played. 

The Plainsmen will have one more game before heading into winter break as they host Northwest Kansas Tech. JV on Tuesday, Dec. 11 with tip-off at 6 p.m.