LSUs Lloreda Shines Again

HUTCHINSON, Kan. -- Dixie took advantage of its superior inside play, getting 23 points from LSU bound power forward Jaime Lloreda and earning 40 attempts from the charity stripe in a 71-64 victory over Southern Union on Thursday night at the NJCAA quarters.

Dixie opened up a 28-15 late first half lead on a lay-in by sophomore swingman Alfred Williams, and held a 29-17 advantage at the break thanks to some stifling defense and cold Southern Union shooting.

The Bison came out strongly in the second half, stringing together a 10-0 run in the opening three minutes to chop the Rebel lead to 29-27. But in what was a sign of things to come, Dixie amassed a quick 8-0 run, capped by a Rod Prater bucket, to boost the lead back to 39-29 with 15:20 remaining.

The Rebels led by as many as 11 points before Southern Union mounted a final charge against them. Trailing 50-39, the Bison climbed back into the thick of it with a 21-14 spurt to pull within 64-60 with less than a minute to play.

Prater then hit four straight free throws over the next 20 seconds to extend the lead to eight and effectively squelch any chances of a Southern Union comeback.

Williams, Dixie's high rising soph, and Prater, a strong sophomore guard who transferred into the Utah junior college after playing at Grayson County in Texas, each tallied 14 points.

Without the presence of Southern Union's Grady Reynolds (who suffered a knee sprain in the Bison's opening round win over Coastal Georgia), Lloreda owned the paint, wiping 11 rebounds off the glass for the Rebels in addition to his 23 points.

Terrance Hill, Southern Union's outstanding 6-4 sophomore swingman, collected 19 points on a crisp eight of nine shooting performance from the field. The rest of the Bison team shot just 16 of 53 [overall] from the field and a putrid seven of 26 from beyond the arc.

By contrast, Dixie shot just five three pointers on the night (hitting one), but the Rebels converted 28 of 40 from the free throw line to go along with a 21 of 46 effort from the floor.

Dixie will lock horns with an undefeated Schoolcraft (MI) club on Friday night at 8:15 p.m. C.S.T. in one NJCAA semifinal matchup. It's the second straight year that the Rebels have reached the final four. Last year, they lost to eventual national champion Wabash Valley in the semis before blowing out Indian Hills to place third.

Ironically, Wabash defeated Schoolcraft at last year's NJCAA quarters to send the Ocelots into the loser's bracket, where they were eventually vanquished by Okaloosa-Walton.

Wabash Valley has also made this year's semis, but is on the other side of the bracket and will face Coffeyville at 6:30 p.m. Friday for the right to meet the Dixie/Schoolcraft winner.

So either the Rebels or Ocelots will get a rematch with Wabash Valley on Saturday. The question is, will it be in the third place or championship game?

You can count on JUCO Junction/Rivalshoops.com to keep you posted throughout the tournament's conclusion on Saturday night, so stay tuned!