Team 13–4 with home-court advantage for NJCAA Region 13 semifinal

Rosemount, Minn. - By Chris Hayes - The Blue Knights basketball team at Dakota County Technical College posted eight consecutive wins by defeating the Gogebic Community College Samsons 81–65 Wednesday evening, Jan. 7, at The Salvation Army Community Center in St. Paul. The Knights improved their record to 13–4; Gogebic dropped to 9–8.

DCTC Athletic Coordinator Cam Stoltz reported that the basketball team, which competes at the NJCAA Division II level, has exceeded expectations this season. "With this win, DCTC secured the home-court advantage for the NJCAA Region 13 semifinal game," Stoltz said, adding that the game will be played at The Sal. "This is the team's second season under Head Coach Ben Davis."

Andrew Aakre, a 5'10 sophomore guard, led the team in scoring against Gogebic with 17 points, going six for six from the field with five three-pointers. Sam Burt, a 6'7 sophomore forward, added 15 points and a team-leading 10 rebounds. Darian Pittman, a 5'11 freshman guard, had a team-leading 11 assists and went five for six from the line.

Coach Davis pointed out that Gogebic eliminated DCTC from the 2014 regional playoffs. "This game was a big win for us," Davis said. "We just came off another big win against Rochester —they were ranked number eight in the nation. We've had a lot of guys step up from game to game both defensively and offensively. We are having a lot of fun right now and ultimately plan to get better every day."

DCTC basketball schedule

DCTC basketball season stats

DCTC will face Gogebic again Saturday, Feb. 7, at 2 p.m. in Ironwood, Michigan. The team's next game is against University if Wisconsin Wisconsin-Marathon County in Wasau, Wisconsin, Saturday, Jan. 10, at 1 p.m. The next home game is at The Sal against Association Free Lutheran Bible School & Seminary on Wednesday, Jan. 21, at 7 p.m.