Kirkwood men ousted by DMACC
BOONE - There's an old saying in sports that it's difficult for any team to beat another team three times in a season, but that's exactly what host DMACC was able to do Saturday afternoon.
The second-ranked DMACC Bears sent No. 8 Kirkwood home just one game short of a spot at nationals with an 86-69 victory in the championship game of the NJCAA Region XI tournament in Boone.
The Bears will take a 26-5 record to the national tournament. Kirkwood retires with a 25-7 mark.
Although they led for stretches of the first half, in large part by forcing turnovers and scoring in transition, the Eagles could not keep the pressure on down the stretch as DMACC gradually pulled away.
"They've got good players who made plays," said Kirkwood Coach Bryan Petersen. "They're a good team, won our conference and are ranked number two in the country.
"When they go on that run and have players like that, you can do great things. We didn't do a good job of limiting those runs by taking some quick shots that fueled the transition buckets. But I'll give those players the credit for getting those things done."
