Jacks Play Bay Tough but Lose, 83-69
ESCANABA, Mich. – The Alpena Community College men's basketball team dropped their third consecutive Northern Conference game Tuesday night, falling 83-69 to Bay College on the road. The loss drops the Lumberjacks to 1-12 overall and 0-3 in conference play, while Bay College improved to 13-4 overall and 2-1 in the conference.
Despite the defeat, the Lumberjacks received strong performances from Oliver Duthler and Gary Reed. Duthler led all ACC scorers with 15 points on an efficient 6-of-9 shooting, adding two rebounds. Reed provided a spark off the bench with 17 points, connecting on 4-of-6 from the field and an impressive 3-of-4 from beyond the arc. Reed also went 6-for-8 from the free-throw line in eight minutes of action.
Derian Williams added 14 points despite a tough shooting night (4-of-14), while Kobe Johnson contributed 11 points, four assists, and three steals. Johnson's all-around effort included several key plays, including a thunderous dunk in the first half.
Bay College's balanced scoring and efficient offense proved to be the difference. Taveon Vann dominated the paint with 22 points on 11-of-14 shooting, pulling down 11 rebounds for a double-double. The Norse also received double-digit contributions from Mohamed Madey (15 points), William Kelley (12 points), and Emerson Droubie (10 points).
Bay shot 46.5% from the field compared to Alpena's 36.7%, though the Lumberjacks actually outperformed the Norse from three-point range (40.0% to 30.0%) and the free-throw line (73.9% to 57.1%).
The Jacks stayed competitive early, trailing just 40-35 at halftime. After a Reed three-pointer made it 37-28 late in the first half, ACC had chances to make it a closer game heading into the break.
However, Bay opened the second half with a 7-3 run to push the lead to double digits and never looked back. The Norse extended their advantage to as many as 24 points in the second half, with Vann's dunk at the 14:31 mark making it 58-45.
ACC showed fight throughout, with Reed hitting clutch three-pointers and Duthler converting in the paint, but couldn't string together enough stops to mount a serious comeback attempt.
The Lumberjacks will look to snap their losing streak in their next Northern Conference matchup at home against Mid Michigan College on Saturday, Jan. 24. Despite the challenging start to conference play, positive individual performances from players like Duthler and Reed provide building blocks as the team works to find its rhythm.
Game played at Bay College on January 21, 2026