Jan. 25, 2007

Final Stats

By Anthony Arroyo Journal-Advocate sports reporter

STERLING - A day after climbing one spot in the national polls, the ranked No. 7 Northeastern Junior College Plainsmen earned their 19th win of the season with an impressive 84-56 victory against Lamar Community College Wednesday evening.

In order to gain the lopsided victory, NJC had to put in work in the second half. Down by one point, the Plainsmen opened up the half on a 14-4 run, eventually outscoring the Running Lopes 48-19.

"Our effort was there, but I always tell the players to play with a passion and it didn't look like they had any in that first half" Head Coach Eddie Trenkel said of his team's first half performance. "It became one of those things that we had to come out and show what we were made of."

Lamar came to play Wednesday and they showed that during the first half. The team connected on some early three pointers to take leads of five and six on different occasions.

Although Northeastern had 11 first half turnovers that turned into 17 Lamar points, the Plainsmen kept it close shooting 8-10 from the free throw line to only trail 37-36 after one.

NJC came out the gates scoring on the first three offensive possessions to take a 42-37 lead, forcing the Lopes to call an early timeout. Northeastern would never look back.

"Second half, we simply made some adjustments," Trenkel said. "We took note that we weren't feeding the post very much and once we did, it created easier shots for some other players. When one person gets it going, everyone else seems to follow trend."

NJC had numerous dunking opportunities in the second half that awoke the crowd of about 200 people in attendance. Getting the crowd in the game is one of the biggest advantages that coach Trenkel feels gives his team some momentum.

"Once the crowd feels us getting excited, they get excited," Trenkel said. "Then it just becomes fun for all of us."

After shooting an modest 44 percent in the first half, the Plainsmen shot lights out in the second half, shooting 72 percent. NJC forced 16 turnovers in the half, which translated to 33 points.

Freshman Mike Dominguez had yet another grand performance from the field, going 7-11 from the field on his way to a game-high 20 points. Dominguez also hit on four three pointers.

Fellow freshman Troy Smith came off the bench to score 15 points, 11 of which came in the second half.

Sophomore guard Omar Leary had 12 points and dished out six assists, while LaTravis Turner added 10 points and six rebounds.

Coach Trenkel emptied the bench with 1:20 to go in the game. Next up for Northeastern basketball will be a visit from Sheridan, Wyo., Friday night. The women will kick things off at 5:30 p.m., with the men to follow right after at 7:30.