The Barton Community College men's basketball team were simply outplayed Wednesday night at the Barton Gym as the 5th ranked Red Ravens of Coffeyville Community College handed the Cougars their lowest output of the year in an 81-64 defeat.
The loss dropped Barton to 1-3 in conference play and 2-3 overall as the unbeaten Red Ravens improve to 5-0 in league and 7-0 on the year. Due to Neosho County cancelling Saturday's contest, the Cougars' next game comes next Wednesday for a 7:30 p.m. tip at Butler Community College.
Asanti Price knocking down 4-of-10 from beyond the arc paced three Cougars in double figures with 20 points and a team leading seven rebounds. Justin Harmon added 15 points, burying one of his two three-pointers on the night during a personal 7-0 run giving Barton its lone lead of the game coming at 22-20 with 8:30 before halftime. Willie Lapoole contributed ten points with Desean Munson and Jaheim Holden finishing with eight points.
Coffeyville pulled back in front on a 4-0 spurt following Harmon's go ahead bucket. Lapoole tied things up a possession later at 24-all with 6:15 left but it would be the final time the teams would be deadlocked. From there the Red Ravens launched a 12-0 run, allowing just a Price offensive put back with 1:02 on the clock, in a defensive clamp down leading to a 36-26 edge to the locker room.
A seven point run early in the second frame increased the Coffeyville lead to seventeen. Price led a Barton charge closing the gap to eleven, scoring seven of the Cougars' 11-5 stretch on a jumper, follow-up dunk, and long trey from the top of the key.
Barton cut the gap to ten three times the rest of the way but the Red Ravens would only allow the margin to slip to single digits briefly once the rest of the way.
Following a Coffeyville 1-of-2 trip to the charity stripe, Barton's first opportunity came after a Munson back door layup from a Cameron Brooks-Harris threading of the needle. Five straight by Coffeyville pushed the margin back out but the Cougars fought back again with a seven point stretch behind a pair of Joe Jones' team lead tying four assists, the first leading to a Munson layup and the other setting up Price's fourth three-pointer, with Lapoole's jumper cutting the score to 56-48 with 8:20 to play.
Coffeyville took the wind out of the Cougars sail three minutes later, taking a then-thirteen point lead and burying three of their eight three-pointers in an 8-0 run for a 72-51 lead with 4:17 left.
Tylor Perry and Love Bettis led a balanced Coffeyville attack with 16 and 15 points respectively on a combined 6-of-9 from beyond the arc. Kevaughn Ellis added nine as four other players contributed eight points each including Blaise Keita who led both squads with nine rebounds, four on the offensive glass.
As both teams had a decent shooting night, the Red Ravens won the battle of the boards 40-29 including an 11-6 advantage on the offensive glass leading to a seven point second chance point edge.