Nov. 28, 2006

Final Stats

The NJC men's basketball suffered its first loss of the season to Dodge City Community College, 67-57, in the Dodge City Thanksgiving Classic. Head Coach Eddie Trenkle's team dropped to 8-1 after shooting just 37 percent from the floor and hitting just 6-of-13 free throws.

"We missed a ton of layups in the first half," Trenkle said. "Part of that can be attributed to their athleticism and part of it was nerves of being on the road."

The lead went back and forth throughout the game. But the Plainsmen just didn't get the last word.

"They were a well-coached team with great athletes," Trenkle said. "They're just as athletic as we are. It was a game of runs. Whoever had the last run was going to win and we just made a few more mistakes than they did down the stretch."

LaTravis Turner's 14 points led the Plainsmen, but it wasn't enough to hold off Dodge City and Charlie Coley. Coley scored 16 points and pulled down 15 rebounds to lead Dodge.

Shane Edwards recorded a double-double with 12 points and 12 rebounds for NJC. Omar Leary had 11 points, six rebounds, seven assists and three steals in the loss. Troy Smith came off the bench to contribute 11 points and four assists.