Cougar men seize victories in Best Western Booster Club Classic #GoBarton

The Barton Community College men's basketball team seized a pair of victories over the weekend at the Barton Gym in the Best Western Angus Inn Cougar Booster Club Classic. Trailing by three at halftime in Friday's game against Division II No. 16 ranked Highland Community College, the Cougars buried 7-of-12 from behind the arc in second half play in building an eight point lead before holding off the Scotties for an 81-76 victory. Barton never trailed in Saturday's Classic finale in racing out to a 9-2 lead before later burying the Cougars of Redlands Community College with a 16-1 second half spurt going on to a 97-75 victory. Improving to 3-0 on the early season, Barton will have its final non-conference tune-up Wednesday's 7:30 p.m. contest hosting the junior varsity squad from Sterling College before turning attention to Saturday's conference opener.

Thirteen three-pointers and 56% shooting from the field powered the Cougars to Friday's win over Highland. Marvin Cannon led three Cougars in the double-digit scoring column with seventeen points on 5-of-6 from the field and a perfect six tries from the charity stripe. Kawanise Wilkins added fourteen in a solid overall effort while Noah Webster made his sophomore debut knocking down 3-of-6 from beyond the arc contributing thirteen of the Cougars' twenty-eight point bench production. Keshon Montague again led the squad in the distribution column with nine assists.

Holden Redparth led all scorers on the night burying 5-of-9 from long range and sinking all nine charity throws with a twenty-six point night while just missing the double-double with nine rebounds. Alonzo Williams' 6-of-9 from the field led to fifteen points with Ryan Haskins adding ten to go along with a team leading six assists.

A 9-0 spurt broke Saturday's game open early as Cannon and Kian Dalyrimple scored twelve first half points each leading to a ten point halftime edge. Cannon tacked on thirteen more points in second half action to lead six Cougars and all scorers with a career high twenty-five while tying two others for a team leading eight rebounds giving Barton a twenty-four board advantage. Wilkins dropped fifteen while Akeem White's career high night of thirteen points and eight boards combined with Dalyrimple's production for twenty-five of the Cougars thirty-two bench night. Starters Sam Lorenzen and Elijah Ford each scored eleven with Montague dished out six assists to lead the squad for the third game in a row.

AJ McNeil and Greyden Steinmetz led Redlands in the losing effort scoring fourteen points each with McNeil dishing out a team high four dimes while Steinmetz drained 4-of-8 from long distance. Eleven points each came from Chauncey Thomas and Trenton Saunders while Darrion Hoyle snared seven rebounds. Bobby Arthur, who had a monster twenty-six point, eleven board double-double effort in Friday's victory, was held to just six points and four rebounds in fouling out with just twenty-five minutes of court time.

Redlands first game on Friday was dogfight with Washburn University's junior varsity squad but the Cougars were able to double-up their halftime margin in a 98-88 victory. Led by Arthur's big game, Thomas also had a solid night of six assists and three steals to go along with a twenty point production. McNeil scored seventeen while Keyonte Johnson added fifteen.

The Ichabod squad rebounded from the loss to pull off the Classic's big shocker in handling DII No. 16 Highland's second loss of the season in a 68-65 victory. JoBriel Powell came off the bench for the second game in a row to lead the victory knocking down 4-of-8 from beyond the arc for eighteen points to follow his sixteen point Friday effort. AJ Pleasant dropped in sixteen after opening the Classic with thirteen while Friday's leading scorer Tommy Ekart followed his eighteen point night with a thirteen point afternoon burying three of his five shots from long range. Scoring fourteen points each in Friday's loss to Redlands, Jacob Dickey was held scoreless but distributed a team high four assists in the win while Spencer Wine finished with five points.