Heading on a long road trip to North Dakota before returning home for a quick game on Tuesday night, the Northwest College men’s basketball team completed a three game sweep, defeating Bismarck State College 87-81, United Tribes Technical College 77-51 and the Rocky Mountain College JV 99-91.

NORTHWEST 87, BISMARCK STATE 81

Hopping on the bus for a long trip to North Dakota the Trappers (9-3) took on the Mystics (3-7) for the second time in a week.

The hosts came out strong early, building a 15-8 lead with 14:24 remaining.

Bismarck expanded on that advantage, making it a nine point game up 24-15 with nine minutes remaining in the half.

The Mystics eventually pushed it to double digits, up 30-20 with 6:53 left in the half.

It reached as many as 15 up 45-30 with 1:38 remaining, and the Trappers trailed 49-36 heading into halftime.

“I didn’t think we were getting enough attack at the basket,” coach Andy Ward said.

Northwest cut it down to single digits early in the second half after a Kaden Christensen layup with 17 minutes left, and Northwest quickly got it down to a single possession at 51-48 with 14:54 remaining.

The Trappers tied the game at 59 with 10:32 remaining after a Tessi Thong free throw, and Northwest took the lead a minute later on a Ruben Bos layup at 63-61.

“The guys did a good job in the second half of being more aggressive offensively,” Ward said. “We got some stops when we were scoring the ball, and clawed back in the game pretty quick in the second half and then they just found a way to win.”

Over the next seven minutes the Trappers and Mystics continually exchanged the lead, with neither team gaining an advantage until a Colin Hayes and-one made it 77-72 with 2:44 remaining.

Bismarck cut the lead down to two with 50 seconds remaining at 83-81, before Northwest sealed it with free throws late for the 87-81 win.

“I was really proud of the way they responded. They came together, played together, finished it out and got a win despite digging a pretty big hole in the first half,” Ward said.

Drew Larson and Hayes led Northwest with 17 points each, Thong added 14, Christensen had 12 and Preston Condie had 11.

Larson led with eight rebounds, Thong led with eight assists and four steals.

NORTHWEST 77, UNITED TRIBES 51

After the win Friday the Trappers took on the Thunderbirds (3-9).

Northwest handled the early extended pressure from the hosts, building a 15-7 lead five minutes in.

“We took really good care of the basketball, their press didn’t really bother us,” Ward said. “We shot the ball really well in the first half and played pretty well defensively, rebounded the ball well.”

The lead reached double digits early, when a Tate Monroe 3-pointer made it a 25-15 game eight minutes in.

Northwest kept pushing, building its lead out to 16 with just under five minutes remaining after a Larson dunk.

The lead reached 18 before the half, when another Monroe 3-pointer late made it 44-26 at the break.

The difference reached 20 just over two minutes into the half on a Larson layup as Northwest led 48-28.

It eventually went over 30 after Thong had a steal and layup to make it 59-28 with 15 minutes left in the game.

The hosts cut into the lead, bringing it as close as 21 as the Trappers led 67-46 with eight minutes left.

Northwest finished the game strong, earning a 77-51 win.

“We didn’t shoot the ball nearly as well in the second half — I thought we got a little impatient,” Ward said. “Had some quick triggers that we didn’t need.”

Christensen led with 16 points, Thong added 15 while Condie, Larson and Monroe each had 11 points.

Christensen and Carter Clark tied for the team lead with six rebounds, Thong had six assists and Bos had three blocks.

NORTHWEST 99, ROCKY MOUNTAIN JV 91

Making a quick pit stop at home on Tuesday night the Trappers matched up with the Battlin’ Bears.

Strong shooting was the story throughout the contest, as the Trappers started strong and built a 21-12 lead five minutes into the game.

The visitors responded, cutting into the lead, but Northwest still led 27-24 midway through the first half.

Rocky took the lead on a 3-pointer with seven minutes remaining, claiming the 30-29 advantage.

Both teams exchanged the lead down the final stretch of the first half, and the Trappers held a slim 38-37 lead at the break.

Strong shooting continued early in the second half, as the two teams quickly pushed the scoring and the visitors led 51-50.

Northwest reclaimed the lead to make it 64-61 with 11:44 left in the game, as neither team wanted to miss.

The Trappers pushed their lead out further, making it an 81-74 lead with 6:19 left.

A response by the visitors made it an 85-81 game with three minutes left, but one last push by the Trappers helped the hosts finish the week 3-0 and defeat the Battlin’ Bears 99-91.

“Gotta give Rocky credit, they shot the ball really well,” Ward said. “Their big kid inside gave us problems.”

Northwest finished the game shooting 61.5% from the field and 48% from 3-point range as a team while the Battlin’ Bears shot 53.2% and 40.5% respectively.

LONG ROAD TRIP

Northwest heads back north this weekend, starting with a road game in North Dakota against Williston State College (7-3) at 6:30 p.m. on Friday.

“I want them to focus on the next possession and not just the next game. We’ve got to play possession to possession, everything else will take care of itself,” Ward said.

Northwest then drops back down into Montana to take on Dawson Community College (8-1) at 4 p.m. on Saturday.

NORTHWEST 87, BISMARCK STATE 81

Total rebounds then offensive rebounds in ()

Points — Drew Larson 17, Colin Hayes 17, Tessi Thong 14, Kaden Christensen 12, Preston Condie 11, Ruben Bos 6, Tate Monroe 3, Carter Clark 3, Trey Rinn 2, Eli Patterson 2

Rebounds — Drew Larson 8 (3), Kaden Christensen 7 (3), Tessi Thong 5 (1), Preston Condie 2 (1), Trey Rinn 1 (1), Eli Patterson 1, Ruben Bos 1

Assists — Tessi Thong 8, Drew Larson 3, Kaden Christensen 1, Preston Condie 1, Tate Monroe 1, Trey Rinn 1, Ruben Bos 1

Steals — Tessi Thong 4, Drew Larson 2, Eli Patterson 1

Blocks — Trey Rinn 1

NORTHWEST 77, UNITED TRIBES 51

Points — Kaden Christensen 16, Tessi Thong 15, Preston Condie 11, Drew Larson 11, Tate Monroe 11, Ruben Bos 5, Eli Patterson 3, Colin Hayes 2, Ants-Kristjan Kalmus 2, Carter Clark 1

Rebounds — Kaden Christensen 6 (1), Carter Clark 6 (1), Tessi Thong 4, Preston Condie 4 (1), Colin Hayes 4 (1), Trey Rinn 4 (2), Ruben Bos 3 (1), Ants-Kristjan Kalmus 3 (1), Tate Monroe 2, Eli Patterson 2

Assists — Tessi Thong 6, Kaden Christensen 3, Preston Condie 3, Drew Larson 2, Colin Hayes 2, Eli Patterson 2, Tate Monroe 1, Carter Clark 1, Trey Rinn 1, Ruben Bos 1, Ants-Kristjan Kalmus 1

Steals — Tessi Thong 2, Drew Larson 1

Blocks — Ruben Bos 3, Drew Larson 1, Ants-Kristjan Kalmus 1

NORTHWEST 99, ROCKY MOUNTAIN JV 91

Points — Colin Hayes 28, Preston Condie 17, Tessi Thong 15, Drew Larson 12, Ruben Bos 9, Trey Rinn 7, Tate Monroe 5, Kaden Christensen 4, Eli Patterson 2

Rebounds — Drew Larson 5 (1), Ruben Bos 4 (1), Tessi Thong 3, Tate Monroe 3 (1), Trey Rinn 3 (1), Eli Patterson 3 (1), Preston Condie 2, Carter Clark 2, Colin Hayes 2, Ants-Kristjan Kalmus 1

Assists — Tessi Thong 10, Preston Condie 4, Tate Monroe 3, Carter Clark 2, Eli Patterson 2, Colin Hayes 2, Kaden Christensen 1, Drew Larson 1, Trey Rinn 1

Steals — Kaden Christensen 2, Ruben Bos 2, Tessi Thong 1, Preston Condie 1, Drew Larson 1, Carter Clark 1