BLUE DRAGONS FALL TO RED RAVENS IN BATTLE OF NJCAA RANKED TEAMS

Hutchinson CC Sports Information

Every time the Hutchinson Community College men's basketball team made a challenge at Coffeyville Wednesday night, the Red Ravens had an answer.

The Blue Dragons struggled defensively against Coffeyville's relentless attack as No. 14 Hutchinson dropped an 88-68 Jayhawk Conference contest to the No. 8-ranked Red Ravens at the Sports Arena.

Hutchinson falls to 1-1 (0-1 in the Jayhawk West) and will next prepare for Neosho County at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday at the Sports Arena. Coffeyville improves to 3-0 (1-0 Jayhawk East) and extends its winning streak to 12 games dating back to last season.

A Josh Baker 3-pointers on Hutchison's first possession of the game was the only lead the Blue Dragons had at 3-2. Trailing 13-12 with 14:29 to play in the first half, the Blue Dragons saw Coffeyville take command with a 12-4 run on a Noah Butler layup.

The game then became an uphill battle for the Blue Dragons, which trailed by as many as 12 points in the first 20 minutes. Still down 10 late in the first half, back-to-back baskets by Majok Kuath and Bryant Selebanque cut the Dragon deficit to 42-26 at halftime.

Matt Mayers scored the first points of the second half to pull Hutchinson within 42-38, but Coffeyville went on an 8-2 run to lead 50-40 with 17:37 left on two Larry White free throws.

The Blue Dragons made two more substantial runs at the Ravens in the second half. Chris Robinson's layup with 16:20 to play pulled Hutch within 50-44, but Coffeyville scored six straight to lead 56-44 with 15:07 remaining.

Hutchinson answered back with an 11-0 run over the next 3:22 and trailed just 56-55 after an Isaiah Bujdoso free throw with 11:45 to play. Kevaughn Ellis hit a 3-pointer to stop that Blue Dragon advance. Donovan Taylor's inside bucket with 9:04 to go in the second half cut the Dragon deficit to 63-59. That turned out to be Hutch's last true challenge.

Backed by 50 percent shooting in the second half, Coffeyville outscored Hutchinson 25-9 in the final 9 minutes to earn the victory.

Mayers had a second-straight strong game for Hutchinson, leading the Blue Dragons with 17 points on 7 of 9 shooting and nine rebounds.

Kuath finished with 12 points and four boards. Selebanque had 11 points, while Buddoso had 10 points and a career-high eight assists.

Hutchinson shot 26 of 56 overall (46.4 percent) hitting only 3 of 11 from 3-point range and 13 of 22 from the free-throw line. Hutch committed 19 turnovers, but held a 36-33 rebounding advantage.

White had a game-high 18 points to pace the Red Ravens. Tylor Price nailed 5 of 6 from 3-point range and had 16 points. Markeith Browning finished with 13 points and Blaise Keita had 10.

Coffeyville shot 30 of 66 from the field (45.5 percent), nailing 11 of 26 from 3-points range and 17 of 19 from the free-throw line.

GAME NOTES – The Blue Dragons now lead the all-time series with Coffeyville 29-23 including 11-5 at home and 9-3 at the Sports Arena. … The 20-point margin of defeat was the largest against Coffeyville in season history. The previous largest margin of loss was 14 points set in 2004. … Over the last 15 meetings with Coffeyville, the Blue Dragons are 7-8.