ORANGE CITY, Iowa — Dakota Wesleyan Men's Basketball traveled to Iowa to face the Northwestern Red Raiders to close the regular season.
The Red Raiders would begin the contest with a 12-0 scoring run that would put the Tigers at an initial disadvantage, but the Tigers were slowly able to put their own counterattack together with a surge from Gavin Hinker off the bench, who would go on to record a team-leading 14 points, five rebounds, and three blocks, all career-best marks for the freshman out of Mitchell. He was joined by fellow freshman forward Noah Oberfeld, who also came off the bench to put up 13 total points, lead the Tigers in rebounds with eight, and record two steals in what was also an impressive performance. The pair helped match the size of some of the Northwestern players, but a well-balanced attack from the Red Raiders kept the Tigers out of reach on the scoreboard. Still, the Tigers fought back as Anthony Riggans posted 10 points in the starting lineup, while Oliver Vincent and CJ Banks combined for 13 points as DWU went deep into the rotation to find contributions offensively. The Tigers, with the help of the freshman front-court duo of Hinker and Oberfeld, matched the Red Raiders with 30 points in the paint, but NWC was able to nearly double DWU's rebound count by the end of the game. Maximized possessions gave Northwestern a 58-30 lead at the half.
The second half stayed at a similar pace, with the Red Raiders able to maintain their double-digit lead through the rest of the contest. The Tigers continued to try to get more players involved, but limited opportunities for the starting lineup prevented them from gaining any ground on the Red Raiders. Dakota Wesleyan was able to limit turnovers, but a more efficient shooting clip for Northwestern prevented the five-turnover differential from making a massive impact. The added contributions of the bench players helped gain some momentum, including appearances from Andrew Younan and Aiden Costain on the statsheet, but the lead built by NWC was too much for DWU to overcome. Northwestern would take the win, 97-65. The Tigers end the regular season with a 14-14 overall record, and a 9-11 record in conference play, earning the seventh seed in the 2026 GPAC Men's Basketball Championship Tournament.
DWU Men's Basketball will return to the second-seeded Northwestern Red Raiders in Orange City, Iowa, in the first round of the GPAC Tournament on Wednesday, February 25th, at 7:00 PM. See the full 2025-26 schedule here.