Blue Knights defeat NIACC & Ellsworth in opening games of inaugural season
Competing as an independent at the NJCAA DII level, men’s basketball played the first game of the team’s inaugural season Nov. 11, 2011, at North Iowa Area Community College in Mason City, Iowa. The Knights posted a historic win for the program, beating the Trojans 89–78. The next day, also in Mason City, DCTC got the program’s second win, downing the Ellsworth Community College Panthers 70–61.
“We made history,” said Head Coach Jay Pivec, a member of the NJCAA Hall of Fame. “DCTC’s brand-new basketball program got its first two wins. The victories are significant not only because this is our first year, but also because our opponents have very good teams. Very few teams win back to back versus NIACC and Ellsworth. And both games were on the road.”
DCTC basketball is 2–0 as of Nov. 14. The Knights play Rochester Community and Technical College (1–0) Nov. 18 at 7 p.m. in Rochester. The Yellowjackets are ranked #2 on the latest NJCAA Men’s Basketball Division III poll.
The Blue Knights have a 30-game schedule. Ron Gates, Coach Piv’s assistant for two decades, serves as associate head coach. Home games are played at the Salvation Army Community Center in St. Paul. The team practices at the High Performance Academy in Eagan.
Jay and Crew…way to go! Congratulations on a historic game! Best of luck for many more wins!
Go blue!!!!!!! Fantastic!