Barton moves into quarterfinals with win over KCK to open Region VI play

Barton moves into quarterfinals with win over KCK to open Region VI play
The Barton County Community College men's basketball team earned a trip to Salina and the quarterfinals of the Region VI Men's Basketball Tournament with a 90-74 win over Kansas City Kansas Wednesday night at the Barton County Gym. The win was the 3rd time in 4 years the Cougars have defeated the Blue Devils in the opening round of the Region VI Tournament in Great Bend. Barton is now 23-8 and will face Cowley County (23-8) in the quarterfinals Sunday at 5 pm at the Bicentennial Center in Salina. KCK ends its season at 15-16.

Highlights
Barton got off to a sluggish start in the contest, falling behind by as many as 7 points early in the game on a couple of occasions including 18-11 with just less than 12 minutes to play in the opening half. The Cougars didn't retake the lead until a 3-point play from Justin Rose gave Barton a 35-34 lead. Rose also gave the Cougars their biggest lead of the opening half with a steal and layup to end the 1st half with Barton on top 39-36.

The Blue Devils quickly tied the game to start the 2nd half with 3-pointer, but Barton took over from there. The Cougars went on a 15-2 run following the opening trey by KCK, giving Barton a 54-41 lead with 15 minutes to play. That run stretched to 23-4 by the 12-minute mark for a 62-43 lead following a Rone Smith 3-pointer. The lead grew to as many as 24 points before the Blue Devils whittled it back down to 82-72 with 1:41 to play. But Barton hit its free throws down the stretch and pulled away for the 16-point win.

Four Cougars found double figures, led by JP Batista. Batista's string of 7 consecutive double-doubles came to an end, but he did score 24 points on 9-of-10 shooting from the floor and grabbed 6 rebounds. Smith scored 19 off the Cougar bench while Rose and Aubrey Bruner tossed in 15 and 12 for Barton. Rose also handed out 7 assists and grabbed a team-high 8 rebounds. Bruner led Barton with 8 assists. Greg Wells paced 4 Blue Devils in double figures with 22.

Stats
Stats can be found at www.bartonccc.edu/sports

Next
March 8 – v Cowley County, 5 pm (Region VI quarterfinals at the Bicentennial Center in Salina)

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Check out Barton County Men's Basketball Online at www.bartonccc.edu/sports