ARCC Classic Preview - December 16th and 17th

Anoka-Ramsey Community College will be hosting the ARCC Classic on December 16^th and 17^th.  The schedule of games will consist of both men’s and women’s games.

Schedule of Games

*All games will be played on the Coon Rapids campus of Anoka-Ramsey Community College

Friday, December 16^th

2:00pm (Women’s Game): Northwestern JV vs. Rochester

4:00pm (Men’s Game): Vermilion vs. Dakota County Tech

6:00pm (Women’s Game): Anoka-Ramsey vs. Bismarck State

8:00pm (Men’s Game): Anoka-Ramsey vs. Bismarck State

Saturday, December 17^th

10:00am (Women’s Game): Anoka-Ramsey vs. Augsburg JV

12:00pm (Women’s Game): Bismarck State vs. Rochester

2:00pm (Men’s Game): Bismarck State vs. Dakota County Tech

4:00pm (Men’s Game): Anoka-Ramsey vs. Vermilion

Men’s Team Previews

Anoka-Ramsey Community College

Current Record: 7-1

NJCAA Division III            

Head Coach Ron Larson

Players to Watch:

J.J. Butler - 6’6” - Forward (sophomore): 11.6 points, 6.8 rebounds, 38.9% 3FGs

Antone Darrington-  5’11” - Guard (sophomore): 6.3 points, 2.0 rebounds, 3.6 assists

Lemuel Doe - 6’0” - Guard (freshman): 14.9 points, 5.0 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 37% 3FGs.

David Hicks - 6’1” - Guard (freshman): 12.7 points, 5.3 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 2.4 steals

Chris Harmon - 6’5” - Forward (freshman): 11.4 points, 7.1 rebounds, 2.4 assists

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Vermilion Community College

Current Record: 6-4

NJCAA Division III

Head Coach Paul McDonald

Players to Watch:

Taylor Smaller - 5’9” - Guard (sophomore, St. Paul Central High School): All-Region XIII in 2011; currently leading the state in scoring with 24.4 points per game.  Also contributing 7 assists, and 4.75 steals per game.  Currently receiving NCAA Division II interest.

Donte Warlick - 5’10” - Guard (sophomore, St. Paul Johnson High School): All-Southern Division in 2011; 14.5 points per game, 3.5 steals per game.

Kemp McCray - 6’6” - Center (freshman, Baltimore, MD): Tough inside player; 14.7 points per game, 13.3 rebounds per game.

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Dakota County Technical College

Current Record: 7-3

NJCAA Division II

Head Coach Jay Pivec

Players to Watch:

Kevin Thompson - Guard (sophomore): 13.6 points, 11.0 rebounds, 3.0 steals

Bryale Winters – Guard (freshman): 11.2 points, 50% 3FGs

Preston McCourt – Guard (freshman): 10.2 points, 47.3% 3FGs

Chris McMorris – Forward – (freshman): 10.7 points, 2.2 rebounds

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Bismarck State College

Current Record: 10-2

NJCAA Division II (ranked #8 in latest poll)

Head Coach Jason Harris

Players to Watch:

Malik Wood – 5’10” – Guard (freshman): 18.4 points, 5.2 rebounds, 4.8 assists, 38.2% 3FGs

DeWayne Liggins – 6’2” – Guard (freshman): 16.7 points, 5.6 rebounds, 3.6 assists

Garet Tucker – 6’8” – Forward (freshman): 11.9 points, 7.1 rebounds

Gabe Deng – 6’5” – Forward (freshman): 8.1 points, 7.1 rebounds

Game Recaps: Golden Rams Run Win Streak to Seven

The Anoka-Ramsey Men's Basketball team ran their winning streak to seven with two road victories over MCAC Northern Division opponents.  On Friday night, the Golden Rams defeated Northland Community and Technical College 68-67, and on Saturday afternoon, defeated Itasca Community College 75-59.

Northland

In a game that saw seven ties and 13 lead changes, the Golden Rams fought back from a 59-50 deficit in the second half to pull out a 68-67 win over Northland.

A defensive battle from the start, neither team was able to gain a decisive edge in the first half with Northland going on an 8-0 run to end the half and take a 28-27 lead into the break despite being held to 24.2 percent shooting.  Northland had a 10-2 edge in made free throws in the half.

Anoka-Ramsey started out fast in the second half, scoring the first six points to take a 33-28 lead, but Northland answered with a 5-0 run of their own to tie the score.  From there, Northland began to pull away eventually taking their 59-50 lead before a furious comeback by the Golden Rams.

Down two with less than 30 seconds left, Chris Harmon scored and drew a foul, making the free throw, for the 68-67 lead.  Northland drew a foul with about ten seconds remaining but missed both free throws.  The rebound went out of bounds off the Golden Rams, giving Northland one last chance.

Northland had three shots in the lane, all contested, in the final ten seconds before a blocked shot and recovery by Corey Barrett with two seconds remaining sealed the victory.

J.J. Butler led the Golden Rams with 15 points and nine rebounds, including a thunderous alley-oop in the first half.

David Hicks chipped in with 13 points, Lemuel Doe finished with ten points, and Jimmy Sauser came off the bench to tally nine points on 3-5 shooting from the three-point line.

Harmon finished with eight points, seven rebounds, and five assists.

Itasca

Another overall impressive defensive effort led the Golden Rams to a 75-59 victory over Itasca.  The Golden Rams limited Itasca to just 25.8 percent shooting and 20 points in the first half to take a 33-20 lead into the break.  Anoka-Ramsey countered shooting 14 of 25 for 56 percent.

The lead grew to 19 with just under ten minutes remaining, but the Vikings wouldn't go away as a quick 8-0 run cut the deficit to just eleven with six and a half minutes left.

But the Golden Rams regrouped and pushed the lead to as high as 21 before settling on the final margin.

The Golden Rams shot a blistering 52.8 percent for the game, holding Itasca to just 30.6 percent and 7 of 23 from the three-point line.

Anoka-Ramsey also held a 44-35 edge in rebounds.

Lemuel Doe led the team with 18 points on 6 of 9 shooting and 5 of 6 from the free throw line.  Doe also finished with six rebounds.

J.J. Butler scored 16 points on 8 of 12 shooting and Chris Harmon scored 14 points to go along with ten rebounds for the double-double.

Henry Breedlove finished with seven points on 3 of 4 shooting and seven rebounds.  Michael Stephens also finished with seven points with four rebounds in a season-high 25 minutes of play.

Up Next

The Golden Rams improve their record to 7-1 on the season.  They'll return home for two games in the ARCC Classic before the holiday break, facing Bismarck State College on Friday, December 16th at 8:00pm, then face Vermilion Community College at 4:00pm on Saturday, December 17th.

Look for a preview of the ARCC Classic on the site early next week.

Game Recaps: Golden Rams Sweep Weekend Games

The Anoka-Ramsey Community College Men’s Basketball team swept their weekend home games, defeating Hibbing Community College 76-67 on Friday night and Rainy River Community College 79-72 on Saturday afternoon.

Hibbing Game

The Golden Rams had a good battle with Hibbing on Friday, with neither team gaining much of an advantage the entire first half thanks to stingy defenses.

Anoka-Ramsey carried a small 34-32 lead into the break but only managed to shoot 40 percent while holding Hibbing to 38.2 percent.

The second half saw Anoka-Ramsey continue with their solid defensive play, but was also able to get the offense flowing as well.  A little run about five minutes into the half extended the Golden Ram lead to double digits where it remained the rest of the night.

In the second half, the Golden Rams were able to shoot 53.6 percent (15 of 28) while still holding Hibbing to 34.1 percent (15 of 44).  Anoka-Ramsey also got to the free throw line 30 times compared to just ten for Hibbing, although the Golden Rams only made 14 of those attempts.

David Hicks led the team in scoring with 19 points.  Hicks also hauled in nine rebounds, dished out three assists, and recorded four steals.

Chris Harmon scored 14 points on 4 of 6 shooting and 5 of 6 from the free throw line.

Henry Breedlove scored 12 points, and Lemuel Doe added 11 to round out the double figure scorers.

Rainy River Game

Game Two of the weekend saw Anoka-Ramsey jump out to an early double digit lead, which was extended to 22 at one point in the first half.  A small run by Rainy River in the last five minutes cut to the Golden Ram lead to 18 (45-27) at halftime.

A lackluster second half saw the Golden Rams give back a large portion of the lead they had built and they hung on for the nine point win.

Anoka-Ramsey shot 46.5 percent from the field for the game, while holding Rainy River to 40.3 percent (but 50 percent in the second half).  The Golden Rams held a 54-37 edge in rebounds as well.

Free throws continue to be an issue as Anoka-Ramsey hit only eight of their 21 attempts.

Lemuel Doe led in scoring with 17 points.  J.J. Butler scored 14 of his 16 points in the first half and also had eight rebounds.  Henry Breedlove scored a career-high 14 points on 6 of 9 shooting and adding eight rebounds as well.

David Hicks had 12 points, six rebounds, and five assists.  Corey Barrett hauled in a game-high 13 rebounds.

The Golden Rams will be in action next on Friday, December 9^th when they travel to Northland Community College for an 8:00pm game, then travel to take on Itasca Community College on Saturday, December 10^th at 3:00pm.

The Golden Rams are now 5-1 after winning their fifth straight game.