Hutchinson CC Sports Information
EL DORADO – At the site of the biggest comeback in Hutchinson Community College men's basketball history in 2018, the Blue Dragons had the tables turned on them Wednesday night.
The Blue Dragons let an 18-point first-half lead slip away as Butler's Keyon Thomas nailed a 3-pointer from the right corner with 11.5 seconds remaining to hand Hutchinson a 66-65 loss at the Power Plant.
The Blue Dragons slip to 2-2 overall and 1-2 in the Jayhawk West. Hutchinson plays host to Cloud County on Saturday at the Sports Arena. Butler earns its first Jayhawk Conference win of the season and improves to 3-1 overall and 1-1 in the Jayhawk East.
Powered by a 15-0 run and holding the Grizzlies scoreless for 6 minutes, 39 seconds in the first half, the Blue Dragons built a 36-18 lead with 2:49 to play in the opening half. The Dragons shot 48.4 percent in the opening 20 minutes, holding Butler to 27.8 percent from the floor in leading 41-27 lead at halftime.
Momentum swung toward the Grizzlies right out of the second-half gate as Butler scored on its first three possessions. The Dragons were able to keep the Grizzlies at arm's length and led 65-55 with 3:06 to play after a Majok Kuath follow-up dunk. That turned out to be the final Dragon points of the game.
Still leading 65-58 with 1:54 to play, the Grizzlies got two Noah Thomasson free throws and a Shae Mitchell 3-pointer to make it a point possession game with 1:20 to play.
The Dragons missed their final six shots and had two turnovers in the final minutes, which allowed Butler to complete the comeback with Thomas's 3-pointer with 11.5 seconds left on a Grizzly inbound play.
Kuath had a season-high 20 points and a season-high-tying nine rebounds to lead the Blue Dragons. Kuath hit 8 of 11 shot attempts. He also had a career-high four blocked shots.
Donovan Taylor had a season-high 12 points and Matt Mayers finished with 11 points. Bryant Selebanque posted his first career double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds.
The Blue Dragons dominated the boards, doubling up the Grizzlies, 46-23. Chris Robinson had a game- and career-high 12 rebounds.
The Dragons finished shooting 42.9 percent (27 of 62), going just 2 for 19 from 3-point range and 9 of 16 from the foul line. The Dragons had 12 of their 18 turnovers in the second half.
Shawn Hopkins was one of four Blue Dragons to score in double figures with a team-high 16 points. Thomasson had 12 points, while Thomas and DeeJuan Pruitt finished with 11 points each.
Butler shot 36.9 percent (24 of 65), going 8 of 21 from the 3-point line and 10 of 10 from the free-throw line. Butler had just six turnovers.
GAME NOTES – The Blue Dragons are 125-67 against Butler. … There were three ties and six lead changes. … This was Majok Kuath's fourth career game of 20 or more points. … The 66 points scored by Butler are a Blue Dragon opponent season low.