Redemption day at the Barton Gym, No. 25 Cougars win by seventeen
It had been thirty-one days since the No. 25 ranked Barton Community College men’s basketball team suffered a disappointing loss at Garden City Community College. Saturday at the Barton Gym the Cougars got a sense of redemption in easily handing the Broncbusters a 73-56 defeat. With the win Barton keeps pace for a top two seed in the region with an 8-3 record and 21-4 on the season while dropping Garden City to a tie in the bottom of the standings at 2-9 and 10-15 overall. The Cougars, in the midst of a four-game seven-day stretch, will travel to El Dorado on Monday to take on Butler Community College in a 7:30 p.m. tip at the Power Plant. The Grizzlies, who upset No. 1 ranked Hutchinson on Saturday in the Sports Arena, enter Monday’s contest trailing Barton in the conference standings at 6-4 and 18-6 overall.
Andell Cumberbatch, who nearly put up double-doubles in the first half by scoring nine points and nine rebounds, started a Barton 6-0 run to get the Cougars out to a 15-9 lead seven minutes into the contest. The Cougars then went on a 13-2 run in part due to Turon Parker's fifteen first half points to open a lead that would increase to twenty-two before settling into a 44-25 halftime advantage.
After a 7-2 run to open the second half and increase the lead to twenty-four, the Cougars kept the Busters from getting any closer than sixteen points for much of the half. Back-to-back steal and lay-ups by Garden City's Chris Hall and Jade Cathey did draw the Busters to within thirteen with a minute to play but Parker and Algie Key made four free throws to seal the win.
Parker's eighteen points led the Cougar scoring with Cumberbatch and Key adding double-double performances. Cumberbatch grabbed sixteen rebounds to go along with fifteen points to record his seventh double-double in eleven conference games. Coming off Wednesday's thirty-point performance at Dodge, Key only scored ten points but dished out a game high six assists to go along with eleven rebounds to post his fourth double-double of the season.
Cathey led only two Broncbusters in double scoring with eighteen while also collecting a team high ten rebounds. Coming off the bench Hall scored fifteen coming on 6-of-15 shooting from field. Frank Agholor, who led the Busters in the team's first meeting with twenty-two points, finished with only three points but led the team with four assists.