Waubonsee Community College upsets Iowa Lakes in first round
Mar. 23—DANVILLE — Waubonsee Community College had to beat the defending national champions South Suburban just to make the NJCAA Division II National Tournament at the Mary Miller Center.
The reward for the Chiefs was the No. 12 seed and a first-round matchup against the fifth-seeded Iowa Lakes Community College Lakers from the powerful Iowa Conference, which has won four of the last six national titles.
"Every day, we compares ourselves to South Suburban," Waubonsee coach Lance Robinson said. "If we can beat them, we can beat anyone. That is our standard every year."
That proved to be true on Wednesday on the Dick Shockey Court as Waubonsee advanced into the quarterfinals with a 70-64 victory over Iowa Lakes.
Jaylyn Kelly scored seven of his 15 points in the game's final minute to secure the victory for the Chiefs, who improved to 26-8 with the victory.
Kelly had only made 3-of-10 shots when he buried a 3-pointer with 33 seconds left as part of 13-3 run for Waubonsee in the final 2 minutes, 24 seconds.
"He shoots 43 percent from 3-point range and he is the best shooter in our region," Robinson said. "He's in the gym every day getting up 300 to 500 shots a day, so I'm not surprised that he hit that big 3."
Joey Niesman led the way for the Chiefs with a double-double of 23 points and 10 rebounds, while Brice Langford had a team-high 12 rebounds.
Iowa Lakes, which falls to 24-9, committed 18 turnovers in the contest and the Lakers shot just 37.7 percent (26-of-69) from the field. Isaiah Williams had a team-high 16 for Iowa Lakes, while Jeremiah Burke had a double-double with 15 points and 16 rebounds.
"We just weren't ready to play, and that's my fault," said Iowa Lakes coach Troy Larson.
With the victory on Wednesday, Waubonsee advances to play the host Danville Area Community College Jaguars in the quarterfinals tonight.
"They are very deep and athletic," said Robinson. "It's going to be a packed house.
"We are the best team in Waubonsee history with our win, now we are playing for the state championship."
Tonight's quarterfinal contest is scheduled for an 8 p.m. tipoff.
