Purdue Fort Wayne
South Dakota State
Scott's Second Half Assault Leads IPFW to Win
1/31/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Jan. 31, 2008
Fort Wayne, IN - IPFW senior forward DeWitt Scott scored 22 of his game-high 25 points in the second half, leading the Mastodons to a, 73-63 win over visiting South Dakota State, Thursday night at the Memorial Coliseum.
Scott simply took over in the second half, hitting four of his five triples. His 25 points was a season-high and just one point shy of his career-high of 26 set against Valparaiso last year.
Tonight's game also saw the full-fledged return of senior guard Demetrius Johnson, who had been out of action since a leg injury at the beginning of the month.
"Meechie" responded with a double-double of 13 points and 10 assists.
South Dakota State led for a majority of the first half, with senior forward Ben Beran tossing in eight points.
The Jackrabbits led up until the 4:30 mark. That is when the 'Dons took the lead for good. Senior forward Jaraun Burrows made it 26-25 with a bucket inside. He had 11 in the game.
In fact, the Mastodons closed out the half on a 10-2 run to take a 36-27 halftime lead.
In the second half, Scott scored IPFW's first five points pushing the lead to 12 at 41-29.
The Jacks made a number of runs at the 'Dons in the second half, but each time IPFW was able to answer.
SDSU cut it to three on a layup by freshman guard Dale Moss, but Scott responded with a triple.
The Jackrabbits got as close as two with 4:35 remaining on an old-fashioned three-point play by sophomore forward Kai Williams, but Demetrius Johnson dialed up a three-ball from long range to put the Mastodons up, 64-59.
With IPFW leading by five, 66-61, senior guard Chris Perkins picked the pocket of the Jacks Clint Sargent and Kai Williams, on successive trips up the floor and then came down and hit a huge jumper to give the 'Dons a seven point lead with under a minute to play.
Scott sealed the win with four free throws, and the Mastodons avenged an earlier 73-60 loss in Brookings, South Dakota, 73-63.
Scott gave much of the credit for his performance to his point guard.
"I would say that I was in a rhythm, and I think a big part of it was that this was the first full game that Demetrius (Johnson) was back," he said.
"I'm the type of player that plays off of great penetraters and that is exactly what he is."
"Overall, I really like the way we responded when South Dakota State cut it to two," IPFW head coach Dane Fife said.
"Give our guys credit, they did a nice job of fighting until the end and getting a win."
That win evens the Mastodons conference record at 5-5. They improve to 8-13 overall.
South Dakota State (7-14, 2-8) was led by Beran with 22 points.
IPFW returns to action on Saturday afternoon. The Mastodons host North Dakota State, who lost at Oakland Thursday night, 77-74. Game time is 4:00 p.m.
~Dons~
