By: Con Marshall, CSC Sports Information
CHADRON, Neb. -- January 11, 2020 -- Dixie State used its height and athleticism effectively at both ends of the court while rambling past Chadron State 88-68 in a Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference game in Chadron on Saturday night.
Now 12-3 overall and 7-2 in the RMAC, the Trailblazers made 15 of 30 field goal attempts and 12 of 14 free throws while building a 47-26 halftime margin that pretty well took away the suspense about the outcome.
CSC Coach Houston Reed commended his Eagles for continuing to play hard in the second half, when they outscored the Utah visitors 42-41, but 12 points was as close as CSC ever got on the scoreboard.
"Early foul trouble hurt our offensive flow, and we struggled at times versus their ball screen coverage," said CSC Head Men's Basketball Coach Houston Reed. "We're proud of how our guys competed in the second half and chipped away at their lead early on. We didn't match up well versus them tonight, and Dixie was better than us."
The Eagles led 9-7 after the first 3:13 had been played. But things turned bleak for the hosts when Dixie State went on an 11-0 run, during which Chadron State's leading scorer, Brian Rodriguez, was forced to the bench when he drew his second and third fouls in a 10-second span.
Brady Delimont broke CSC's scoring drought when he knocked down a pair of three-pointers that were just 44 seconds apart to cut Dixie's lead to 21-15. However, the Eagles managed only two more field goals in the final 12 ½ minutes in the opening half, helping Dixie State to its 21-point intermission lead.
Five Trailblazers finished in double figures. Jacob Nicolds, Andre Wilson and Dason Youngblood all tallied 16 points, Jack Pagenkopf scored 13 and Hunter Schofield added 11.
For the game, Dixie State was 28 of 59 (47.5%) from the field, just six of 21 from long range, but 26 of 30 from the free throw line. The Trailblazers' stats also included a 29-5 bulge in points off turnovers, a 40-14 margin in points in the paint and a 22-11 difference in fast break scoring.
Chadron State hit 18 of 51 shots from the field (35.3%). The latter including an above average 11 of 28 showing from behind the arc, and CSC cashed in on 21 of 29 free shots.
Always the smallest player during the 26 minutes he was on the court, Eagles' point guard Colby Jackson was the game's leading scorer with 21 points, 19 of them in the second half. Both Jackson and Dixie's Nicolds finished 10 of 11 at the charity stripe.
Nicolds also was the game's top rebounder with seven.
Besides Jackson, Rodriguez was CSC's only other double-digit scorer with 14 points. Delimont had nine points on three treys.
Now 3-13 for the season and 2-7 in the RMAC, the Eagles will visit New Mexico Highlands and Colorado State-Pueblo this coming weekend.
Dixie State--Dason Youngblood 16, Andre Wilson 16, Jacob Nicolds 16, Jack Pagenkopf 13, Hunter Schofield 11, Jarod Greene 6, Cameron Chadwin 5, Mark Hatch 3, Lleyton Parker 2. Totals: 28-59 (6-21) 26-30, 88 points, 38 rebounds, 13 turnovers.
Chadron State--Colby Jackson 21, Brian Rodriguez 14, Brady Delimont 9, Michael Sparks 6, Dom Coleman 5, Kenan Gray 5, Andre Sepeda 3, Jacob Jefferson 2, Ernesto Cordova 2, Stephon Bell 1. Totals: 18-51 (11-28) 21-29, 68 points, 33 rebounds, 19 turnovers.
Dixie State 47 41 -----88
Chadron State 26 42 ----68
3-pointers: DSU--Wilson 2, Youngblood 1, Chatwin 1, Hatch 1, Pangkopf 1. CSC--Jackson 3, Delimont 3, Rodriguez 2, Sparks 2, Coleman 1.