BIG 2ND HALF POWERS DRAGONS PAST LABETTE

Hutchinson CC Sports Information

Leading by three points at halftime, the Hutchinson Community College men's basketball team dominated the second half and finished the non-conference portion of the schedule with a decisive victory over the Labette Cardinals on Wednesday.

Scoring the first 11 points of the second half, the Blue Dragons rolled to a 79-55 victory over the Cardinals at the Sports Arena.

The Blue Dragons finished the non-conference season with a 5-1 record. Hutchinson now has a full week to prepare for its KJCCC opener next Wednesday against Garden City at the Sports Arena. Labette is now 2-5.

Hutchinson trailed Labette in the first half by as many as four points with 10 lead changes and six ties in the opening 20 minutes. Asher Boney's tip-in at the first half buzzer gave the Dragons a 37-34 lead.

The Blue Dragons opened the second half with an 11-0 run over the first 8:07 of the half. The Dragons limited Labette to 28.6 percent shooting (8 of 28) in a second half where the Dragons outscored the Cardinals 42-21. Hutchinson shot 54.5 percent (18 of 33) in the second half with five 3-pointers.

Making his first career start, Dorar had a game-high 16 points on 7 of 10 shooting. Dorar added seven rebounds and one blocked shot. Dorar had eight points in the second half.

Kyrell Shaw hit a pair of 3-pointers and finished with 15 points.

Boney posted his first career double-double with 10 points on 5 of 9 shooting and 10 rebounds. Boney also had three assists and three steals.

Bobby Cannon finished with nine points and seven rebounds. Lolo Rudolph had seven points and five assists.

The Blue Dragons shot 48.5 percent for the game (32 of 66), hitting 8 of 22 from 3-poing range and 7 of 8 from the foul line. The Dragons dominated the boards 56-25 and had 23 assists to only 10 turnovers.

Josiah Harris had 16 points and Tre Paige had 13 points to lead the Cardinals. Labette shot 35.7 percent overall (20 of 56), going 10 of 33 from 3-point range and 5-9 from the foul line. Labette had 12 turnovers.

An Anthony Alston 3-pointer gave the Blue Dragons an 11-7 lead with 14:30 remaining in the first half, but Labette rallied to tie the game at 12, 17, 22 and 25 with 5:55 to play in the half. The Cardinals then took a 31-27 lead on a Paige 3-pointer with 3:41 remaining in the half.

The Dragons closed the first half on a 10-3 run. Cannon had a field goal and three-point play on back-to-back possessions, Shaw hit a 3-pointer and Boney's tip-in at the buzzer gave the Blue Dragons a 37-34 lead at halftime.

Boney's jumper in the paint started the Dragons 11-0 run to start the second half. Jonathan Ogunfuye's bucket with 12:58 remaining gave the Blue Dragons a 50-34 lead. That run grew to 17-2. Cannon's field goal gave the Dragons a 54-36 with 10:54 to go.

A Daleron Thomas 3-pointer with 6:04 to play gave the Dragons their first 20-point lead at 63-43. The Dragons' largest lead was 24 points when Bear Moddelmog's 3-pointer gave the Dragons their final result of 79-55.

GAME NOTES – The Blue Dragons have won seven in a row against Labette and are 37-14 all-time against the Cardinals. … This was all-time win No. 1,947. … The 21 points allowed in the second half were an opponent season low. … The Dragons outscored Labette 46-14 in the paint.