{gallery}12_01_09/trapperball{/gallery} Northwest College's Mitch Ackelson scored in double figures both Friday and Saturday night as the Trappers picked up a pair of victories at the Sheridan Lions Tournament over the weekend. NWC, 7-2 on the year, host their own tournament this week with games against Little Big Horn and Eastern Wyoming scheduled. Tribune photo by Randal Horobik Trapper men win twice at Sheridan Lions Tournament over weekendThe Northwest College Trapper men's basketball team scored a pair of lopsided weekend wins as part of the Sheridan Lions Tournament at Sheridan College. The Trappers opened play with a 76-52 win over the Rocky Mountain College JV, then followed with an 87-45 win over Oglala Lakota College on Saturday. “Defensively, I thought we did a good job this weekend,” said Trapper head coach Andy Ward, whose team improved to 7-2 overall. “Both games, we held teams to 35 or 36 percent shooting.”

It was the second meeting this season between the Trappers and the Rocky Mountain JV squad. Unlike the first meeting, the Battlin' Bears were able to slow down Northwest with a zone defensive scheme.

“They brought a couple players to the tournament that they didn't have when they played us the first time,” Ward said, referring to a 104-56 win in the Trappers' season opener. “We weren't able to turn them over quite as much this time, and then they went zone against us and that really cut down the number of possessions each team had.”

After a back-and-forth start in the game, the Trappers were able to mount a sustained run in the closing minutes of the first half to grab a 35-23 lead at intermission. NWC knocked down 50 percent of its shots from the floor in the second half to prevent any chance of a Rocky Mountain rally.

“We did a good job of executing our zone offense,” said Ward. “The guys did a nice job of taking their time and making the extra pass to ensure we got a wide open look at the bucket.”

Five players finished in double figures for the Trappers. Chantz Ramos, Casper Hesseldal and Ricardo Andreotti each finished with 14 points to pace NWC. Mitchell Ackelson added 11 points and Keeton Tucker finished his day with 10 points.

Ackelson also had a team-high five assists while Andreotti closed out the night with 13 rebounds. As a team, the Trappers held a decisive 44-25 advantage on the glass.

The script changed little on Saturday night as Northwest again saw five players find their way into double figures. The Trappers got out to a fast start and were up 57-31 at the half after hitting nearly 70 percent of their shots from the floor.

In the second half, Northwest allowed just 14 points defensively, including only three points during the game's final 10 minutes.

Hesseldal finished with 25 points to lead the way for Northwest. Amen Osayande added 14 points while Ackelson finished with 13, Tucker with 12 and Andreotti had 10 points. Andreotti posted his second double-double of the weekend by also hauling in 10 of the Trappers 47 rebounds in the game.

For the second consecutive night, Northwest College dominated the glass, leading 47-19 in the rebounding department.

Osayande finished with three blocked shots while David Moats dished out five assists.

“Again, we saw a zone defense for almost the entire game,” said Ward. “We got a lot of work on our zone offense this week. Defensively, we played really solid, especially in the second half.”

Northwest College resumes action on Friday night with a home game against Little Big Horn College. The team plays Saturday against Eastern Wyoming. Both games are part of the Trapper Tournament field at Hank Cabre Gym. Defending NJCAA national champion Salt Lake City Community College will round out the four-team men's bracket for the event.