Preview: Region XIII Junior College Men’s Basketball Semifinal

WILLISTON, N.D. (Interstat) — The North Dakota State College of Science Wildcats, riding a three-game winning streak, will host the Miles Community College Pioneers in a Region XIII men’s junior college basketball tournament semifinal on Wednesday.

The Wildcats (8-3) swept the regular-season series against the Pioneers (6-14), winning 83-68 at home on Feb. 9 and 77-75 on the road on Jan. 19. NDSCS enters the postseason having won five of its last six games, including a dominant 75-49 road victory over Williston State on Feb. 23.

Miles, meanwhile, snapped a four-game skid with an 84-78 home win over Lake Region State on Sunday in its regular-season finale. The Pioneers will need a similar performance to challenge the Wildcats, who have averaged 86.3 points in their two previous meetings this season.

A key matchup will feature Miles forward Shad Boyce against NDSCS’s Jikany Deang. Boyce is coming off a standout performance with 17 points and 14 rebounds in the win over Lake Region State. He had 11 points and seven rebounds in the Feb. 9 loss at NDSCS. Deang powered the Wildcats in their last outing, posting 22 points and 11 rebounds against Williston State. He had seven points and nine rebounds in the most recent meeting with Miles.

For Miles to pull the upset, they will likely need another big game from Azenio Cossa, who scored 27 points in Sunday’s win, and Jace Hill, who added 13 points and nine rebounds. NDSCS counters with a balanced attack; Luke Christensen and John Kallon each added 10 points in the win over Williston State.

The winner will advance to the Region XIII championship game on Saturday.