By Tad Dorsey

2020-21 GPAC MEN’S BASKETBALL STANDINGS

RVDordt0-0.0003-01.0000-02-01-0
 Jamestown0-0.0003-01.0003-00-00-0
7Morningside0-0.0002-01.0000-01-01-0
RVNorthwestern0-0.0002-01.0002-00-00-0
 Concordia0-0.0003-1.7502-00-01-1
 Hastings0-0.0003-1.7501-10-02-0
 Doane0-0.0003-2.6003-00-10-1
 Briar Cliff0-0.0002-2.5000-11-11-0
 Mount Marty0-0.0002-2.5001-10-01-1
 Dakota Wesleyan0-0.0001-1.5000-00-01-1
 Midland0-0.0000-1.0000-10-00-0
  • #7 Morningside was off this week.  They are 2-0 and open GPAC play at Jamestown on Wednesday.   They also compete in the Presentation College Classic, facing Yellowstone Christian College on Friday and 21st ranked Carroll College on Saturday. 
  • RV Dordt swept their two games in the Northwestern/Pizza Ranch Classic.  They defeated RV Bellevue in a high-level matchup, 87-76, in their opening game.  The Defenders started strong, opening up a 14-point first half lead, before the Bruins cut it to 4 at halftime. Bellevue took the lead after halftime, going up 52-51 with 15:07 left.  A late 7-0 run started by a three-point basket by Jesse Jansma flipped the lead and helped Dordt to close the game. Jacob Vis continued a strong start, going 9-12 with 20 points and 5 rebounds.  Jesse Jansma added 17 points and 6 rebounds, Garrett Franken added 10 points, 9 rebounds, and 6 assists.  The Defenders followed that up with a 77-67 victory over Viterbo.  Dordt led for the majority of this game, and all of the second half.  They went up 52-39 with 16:24 remaining, and withstood a Viterbo rally, as they cut the lead to 67-63 late in the game. In this game Jesse Jansma scored 10 points, becoming the 40th Defender to score at least 1,000 career points.  Franken had another big game, adding 12 points, 10 rebounds, and 5 assists.  Jacob Vis was 6-8 with 16 points and 7 rebounds.  The Defenders improve to 3-0, and play at Presentation on Wednesday, before opening GPAC play at Midland on Saturday.  
  •  RV Northwestern opened their season this week sweeping their own classic.  Their first game was an 84-70 victory over Viterbo.  The first half was back and forth, seeing 10 lead changes and a 34-33 Raider lead at half time. The second half saw some distancing by the Raiders, as they went on a 10-4 run to go up by 12, led by a 3 from Jay Small.  In his first collegiate game, freshman Alex Van Kalsbeek was 9-11 with 20 points and 8 rebounds.  Keegan Van Egdom was 5-8 (4-7 from 3) with 14 points.  Northwestern continued a strong week with a very solid 76-60 victory over RV Bellevue.  The Raiders played a very consistent game, going up 38-29 at halftime.  Holding Bellevue star Jemeil King to 4-13 shooting and just 10 points is a very solid effort.  Van Kalsbeek was very solid again, going 9-16 with 21 points and 10 rebounds.  Trent Hilbrands added 15 points, 4 rebounds, and 3 steals.  The Raiders start the season 2-0.  They open GPAC play at Bellevue on Saturday for their only game next week.  
  • Jamestown had the week off.  The Jimmies start 3-0 and are off until hosting #7 Morningside for their GPAC opener on Wednesdsay.  They also travel to play rival Valley City State on Saturday.
  • Concordia won both of their games this week.  The Bulldogs put up big numbers in their opening game against Emmaus Bible, winning 107-48.  The game was not competitive.  10 Bulldogs scored at least 8 points, and none more than Justin Wiersemaโ€™s 11 points.  They also had a comfortable 90-65 victory over Manhattan Christian.  Wiersema again led the Bulldog charge, going 7-12 with 23 points and 4 rebounds, including an impressive alley-oop from Sam Scarpelli.  Gage Smith had a productive day, going 5-10 with 13 points and 19 rebounds.  Concordia improves to 3-1 on the season. They open GPAC play Tuesday, hosting Midland.   They also host RV Northwestern on Saturday.  
  • Hastings won each of their games in the Concordia Classic impressively.  They defeated Manhattan Christian 102-85 in their opening game.  The Broncos opened the game up 8-0 and did not look back.  Karson Gansebom posted a career high 26 points on 9-17 shooting (7-8 from the line).  He also had 8 rebounds.  Mason Hiemstra had an impressive 9-13 effort with 24 points, 9 rebounds, and 4 assists.  They also routed Emmaus Bible, 106-64.  The Broncos went up 10-2, and the blowout was on.  Jared Mattley was big off the bench, going 7-10 with 17 points and 4 steals.  Gansebom was 6-7 with 14 points.  The Broncos improve to 3-1.  Hastings is off this week, they open GPAC play November 18th at Midland.  
  • Doane won their only game of the week, defeating Manhattan Christian College 80-71.  Doane started the game strong, going up 12 early with 14-4 run, led by a pair of threes from Skyler Kelley.  Manhattan Christian cut the led to 38-32 at halftime.  Doane gave up a 9-0 run in the second half to go down 62-56 early in the second half.  In the last 10:24 of the game Doane outscored Manhattan Christian 24-9, taking the win behind big threes from Zach Witters and Anthony Laravie.  Laravie ended up 7-17 with 21 points and 5 steals.  Jaxon Harre and Skyler Kelley each contributed 14 points off the bench.  Doane improves to 3-2 and opens GPAC play hosting Mount Marty on Wednesday.  They are also at Dakota Wesleyan on Saturday.  
  • Briar Cliff lost their only game of the week, falling 55-48 at Presentation.  It was an offensive struggle from both sides.  Briar Cliff fell behind 27-23 at halftime.  The Chargers had a big run after halftime, going up 48-38 with 6 minutes left.  The Saints however scored the last 15 points of the game to finish the upset.  Briar Cliff shot 3-26 from 3 in the loss.  Nick Hoyt was the only Charger in double figures, scoring 16 points on 7-13 shooting.  BCU falls to 2-2.  They open up GPAC play at Dakota Wesleyan on Wednesday before playing at Mount Marty on Saturday.  
  • Mount Marty competed in the NAIA Showcase at the Pentagon, splitting their two games.  They defeated Presentation 88-51 in their first game.  The Lancers went up 47-21 at halftime and cruised from there.  Elijah Pappas went 4-7 with 12 points and 5 rebounds.  Jailen billings added 11 points on 3-6 shooting from 3.  The Lancers could not extend the momentum, falling 84-51 against Valley City State.  Mount Marty fell behind 44-18 at halftime, and despite playing better in the second half could not get back in the game.  Billings went 5-10 with 12 points to lead the Lancers.  Mount Marty is 2-2, they open GPAC play at Doane on Wednesday, before hosting Briar Cliff on Saturday.  
  • Dakota Wesleyan also split their 2 games at the Pentagon.  They lost a very close game against Valley City State, 66-63, to open the season.  The Tigers opened up a double digit lead early in the first half.  With 9 minutes before halftime they were up 24-9.  They were up 9 at halftime.  VCSU used a 14-4 run to tie the game late in the game.  The Vikings took their first lead with 30 seconds to play on a layup, and they held off the Tigers last few shot attempts.  Bradley Dean led the way for DWU, going 6-12 with 19 points.  Koln Oppold added 15 points, 9 rebounds, and 4 assists.  DWU bounced back big in their second game, defeating Presentation 71-48.  The game started slow offensively for both teams, before the Tigers used a 15-2 run to go up 23-10 midway through the half.  The Tigers held a 30-18 lead at half.  The Tigers opened the second half on a 15-0 run, and it wasnโ€™t competitive from there.  Oppold again led the Tigers with 14 points, 6 rebounds, and 5 assists.  Dakota Wesleyan is 1-1, and they open GPAC play hosting Briar Cliff on Wednesday and Doane on Saturday.  
  • ย Midland was off this week.ย  They begin conference play at Concordia on Tuesday, before hosting RV Dordt on Saturday.ย ย 

TADโ€™S POWER RANKINGS

  1. Morningsideย โ€“ Strong preseason favorites looked solid in their first games.
  2. Jamestown โ€“ Mason Walters is going to be a force this season.
  3. Dordt โ€“ Great performance in the Northwestern Classic.
  4. Northwestern โ€“ Very solid opening effort against.
  5. Hastings โ€“ The offense continues to put up big numbers.
  6. Concordia โ€“ Lots of scoring this week!
  7. Dakota Wesleyan โ€“ Tough early loss to VCSU, expect DWU to bounce back.
  8. Briar Cliff โ€“ Offense was rough in the loss to Presentation.
  9. Mount Marty โ€“ Shows some promise, but inconsistent early on.
  10. Doane โ€“ Close win over Manhattan Christian.
  11. Midland โ€“ Competed with Grand View

GAMES OF THE WEEK

7 Morningside at Jamestown Wed Nov 11th 8pm

RV Northwestern at Concordia Sat Nov 14th 4pm

21 Carroll College vs. 7 Morningside  Sat Nov 15th 5pm

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