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Dordt College Men's Basketball vs. Sioux Falls

February 8, 2006

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(Sioux Falls, South Dakota) The Dordt College Defenders nearly pulled off a road-upset on Wednesday night at the Stewart Center, home of the Sioux Falls Cougars. The Cougars fought back from a four point deficit late in the game to preserve their lead in the Great Plains Athletic Conference by a final score of 74-69.

Dordt jumped out to a 16-4 lead on a jumper by Brandon Haan with 12:41 left in the first half. Sioux Falls slowly cut away at the lead, tying it at 21-21 with 7:22 remaining on a Gerad Van Leur lay-up. Back-to-back three-pointers by Luke Ruter reestablished a 27-21 Dordt College lead but the hosts outscored Dordt 12-4 in the final 6:14 of the half to take a 33-31 halftime advantage.

The first fifteen minutes of the second half were back and forth with Sioux Falls seizing control with 4:59 left with a 6-0 run to make it 63-57. The Defenders wouldn't fade. Jim Brinks got a lay-up to cut the lead to two and Luke Ruter hit a three-pointer with 4:14 left to make it 63-62. Ruter continued his hot shooting with a jumnper with 3:50 left to make it 64-62. Dordt would eventually lead 67-63 after a made basket by Eric Van Maanen with 1:58.

Sioux Falls retook the lead when Mike Bowers drilled a three-pointer with 1:05 left, the only shot the freshman would make the entire night. After a turnover the Cougars got a layup by Dylan Kvaale on a broken play with :19 and any hope for a Dordt comeback faded when they missed a shot with :08 remaining.

Dordt wasled by Luke Ruter's game high 20 points on 6-11 shooting, including 4-5 on three-pointers. Brandon Haan had 16 points and ten rebounds and Scott Van Zanten added nine points a three assists. Eric Van Maanen added seven points in a reserve role and Derek Keizer dished out a game high six assists.

Sioux Falls was led by four players in double figures. Millsap had 19, Kvaale 12, Depue 11 and Chad Van Hill 10.

The Defenders are now 10-6 and hold a game lead over Doane for fourth place in the conference. Sioux Falls is 13-2 in the league and hold a game lead in the loss column on Northwestern and Morningside.

Dordt's Current Record: 18-8 (10-6)
Opponent's Current Record: 19-6 (13-2)

Team 1st Half 2nd Half Final
Dordt College 31 38 69
Sioux Falls 33 41 74
Dordt Rebounding Leaders Total
Brandon Haan 10
Luke Ruter 5
Scott Van Zanten 4
Team Total: 30
Opponent Rebounding Leaders Total
Dylan Kvaale 7
Eric Depue 6
Team Total: 32
Dordt Scoring Leaders Total
Luke Ruter 20
Brandon Haan 16
Scott Van Zanten 9
Eric Van Maanen 7
Team Total: 69
Opponent Scoring Leaders Total
Ryan Millsap 19
Dylan Kvaale 12
Eric Depue 11
Chad Van Hill 10
Team Total: 74
Dordt Team Shooting Pct
Field Goals: 24/46 52%
3-Point Field Goals: 7/15 47%
Free Throws: 14/19 74%
Opponent Team Shooting Pct
Field Goals: 28/60 47%
3-Point Field Goals: 7/15 47%
Free Throws: 11/17 65%

For more information, please contact Mike Byker, Sports Information Director, at mbyker@dordt.edu or (712) 722-6301.