Close didn’t count for a victory for the third-straight game Wednesday night when the Rainy River Community College men’s basketball team lost at Fond du Lac, 68-62.
“It should have been a win for us,” said RRCC head coach Jack Cook.
Like the previous two losses against Vermilion and Hibbing, the Voyageurs led at halftime. They were in front of the Thunder at intermission by five, 37-32.
RRCC was once again without its usual starting post player, freshman Joshua Pierre, whom Cook noted didn’t play for the second-straight game because of a sprained ankle.
While both teams shot 50 percent from the field overall — the Voyageurs went 25-50, compared to 26-52 for the Thunder — RRCC shot 2-13 (15.4 percent) from 3-point range, compared to 7-13 (53.8 percent) for Fond du Lac.
“We did not shoot well from 3-point land and that hurt us,” Cook said. “Also, we could not find the boards on the offensive end of the floor.”
The Voyageurs had only four offensive rebounds, compared to 12 for the Thunder, and also ended up with fewer total rebounds — 21 for RRCC and 33 for Fond du Lac.
Jeff Romeus led three RRCC players scoring in double figures with a game-high 20 points. Shane Mitchell added 16 points and Fedner Fleurant put in 10 more.
Kyle Gordon and Michael Hall each scored 16 points to lead Fond du Lac, while James Skinner and Curtis Rogers both added 14 points.
The Voyageurs, who dropped to 3-4 in the Minnesota College Athletic Conference’s Northern Division, return to action this afternoon at Central Lakes.
“We will regroup and focus on Central Lakes (today),” Cook said. “That will be a big win for us if we can pull together and play our game.”
FdL 68, RRCC 62
RRCC 37 25 — 62
FdL 32 36 — 68
RRCC: Alcie Butler 2, Fedner Fleurant 10, Jeff Romeus 20, Andrew Nichols 5, Spencer Collins 9, Shane Mitchell 16. 3-pointers: Romeus, Nichols. Free throws: 10-16. Fouls: 17.
