DANVILLE, Ill. – Lakeland men's basketball got off to a rough start but showed enough fight to be in the game until the final buzzer but fell just one point shy of upsetting Johnson County (KS) Community College in a 73-72 loss in the NJCAA Division II quarterfinal Wednesday night.
With the loss, Lakeland falls to 26-7 overall and out of national title contention. The Lakers will play in the consolation bracket against the loser of Cecil College or John Wood Community College on Friday, March 22 at 2 p.m.
John Dawson was on fire in the first half, scoring 22 of his game-high 27 points after hitting six 3-pointers to lead the Lakers. Chandler Fointno scored 16 points and grabbed nine rebounds in the loss.
Lakeland did not get off to a great start as Johnson County scored the first 11 points of the game and trailed by as much as 14 in the first half. Lakeland did score 12 points in a row capped by a 3-pointer from Dawson to get within 31-29 with 6:04 left in the first.
Tyreke Johnson made a bucket just before the buzzer to get Lakeland within 43-41 at the half.
Johnson County built up a 70-59 lead with 5:58 left in the game but Lakeland went on a run. Lakeland scored seven straight after Rob Brown hit a pair of free throws to get within 70-66 with 2:19 left.
Johnson County nailed a 3 to reach 73 points but Lakeland got buckets from Cory Fulton, Dawson and Brown to get within one. The Lakers were unable to get the lead in the final possession as Johnson County led wire to wire.
For more information about Lakeland athletics, visit www.athletics.lakelandcc.edu.
About Lakeland Community College
Founded in 1967, Lakeland Community College was the first college in Ohio created by a vote of the people. True to our mission, Lakeland provides quality learning opportunities to meet the social and economic needs of the community.
Offering day, evening, weekend and online classes, the college serves more than 10,800 credit and 2,800 noncredit students (2016). For more information about the College, visit www.lakelandcc.edu.
