Knights shoot past McCook to seal rivalry win

McCook, Neb. – A balanced offensive attack helped North Platte emerge victorious at the Peter and Dolores Graff Events Center on Tuesday night against McCook Community College, 85-68.

German Plotnikov led all scorers with 27 points on 11-of-21 shooting, while Timur Krupalija totaled 15 points and 11 rebounds for his fourth double-double of the season.

Knights trailed by as many as six early in the opening half, before an 8-2 burst tied the game up. The margin remained tight over the next three minutes until the Knights took their first lead of the game on a two-handed dunk by Krupalija. McCook stormed back and retook the lead on their next possession and stretched the deficit to five with 11:02 remaining.

A 9-0 run, capped off by a Krupalija layup gave the Knights the momentum. The North Platte offense stretched their lead to eight on a transition layup by Trevon Dennis, but McCook cut into the deficit over the closing minutes of the first half. The momentum didn't sway despite the lead being trimmed down to two, as the Knights closed the half on a 4-0 run to take a six-point lead into the halftime break, 42-36.

Knights never relinquished their lead in the second half, as the lead grew to seventeen on a layup by Dennis with 12:53 remaining in the half. McCook managed to trim the deficit down to eleven inside six minutes to play, but the Knights continued to roll in the closing minutes to seal the road win.

North Platte had one of their best shooting performances of the year shooting 55 percent from the floor, including 6-of-20 (.300) from the perimeter.

Nolan Sughroue (13), Dennis (12), and Nico Felici (11) rounded out the double-digit scorers for the Knights on the night.

Knights return home on Tuesday, Feb. 1 with a NJCAA DI Region IX matchup against the Plainsmen of Northeastern Junior College. Tip is set for 7 p.m. inside the McDonald-Belton Gymnasium.