DRAGONS GET FIRST LOOK AT SAINTS ON SATURDAY IN ARENA

Jayden Garrison and the Blue Dragon men's basketball team meet Seward County at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday at the Sports Arena. (Sammi Carpenter/Blue Dragon Sports Information)
Jayden Garrison and the Blue Dragon men's basketball team meet Seward County at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday at the Sports Arena. (Sammi Carpenter/Blue Dragon Sports Information)

BLUE DRAGON MEN'S BASKETBALL

Hutchinson (11-5, 5-5) vs. Seward County (9-7, 5-5)

When: Saturday, January 7, 2023
Where: Hutchinson Sports Arena, Hutchinson, KS
Time: 7:30 p.m.
Radio:KHUT-FM (102.9); KWBW-AM/FM (1450/98.5), 7:15 p.m. - Glen Grunwald (PBP); Dan Naccarato (Color)
Video:Blue Dragon Sports Network, 7:15 p.m.
Game Sponsor: First National Bank of Hutchinson
Twitter: @bluedragonsport
CLICK FOR FULL BLUE DRAGON GAME NOTES (PDF Format)

Hutchinson CC Sports Information

Tied for sixth place in the Jayhawk Conference standings, the Hutchinson Community College men's basketball team and the Seward County Saints meet for the first time this season on Saturday at the Sports Arena.

Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. in the Blue Dragons' first home game since December 12. The game will be streamed on the Blue Dragon Sports Network beginning at 7:15 p.m. and broadcast live on Blue Dragon flagship station KHUT-FM (102.9) and sister stations KWBW-AM/FM (after the completion of the Kansas City Chiefs game). Airtime is 7:15 p.m.

The Blue Dragons (11-5, 5-5 KJCCC) continue to recover from their late-November swoon with a third-straight victory on Wednesday.

Buoyed by the career-high 28-point effort from Kernan Bundy, the Blue Dragons outlasted a much-improved Northwest Tech team in an 90-87 victory on Wednesday in Goodland.

Bundy hit five first-half 3-pointers to help the Blue Dragons to a 48-41 halftime lead. Bundy and Ra'Sean Frederick hit critical free throws in the final minute of the second half to secure the victory. Aaron Franklin added 22 points, his 12th game of 20 or more points this season. The Dragons hit 12 3-pointers in the game, the ninth time to reach 10 or more treys in a game this season.

The victory also moved Blue Dragon head coach Tommy DeSalme into fifth place on the Jayhawk Conference and eighth place on the Region VI career coaching wins' lists. The victory over the Mavericks broke a fifth-place tie with DeSalme and former Butler and Cowley head coach Randy Smithson. DeSalme now has 321 conference coaching victories.

Saturday's game with be the fifth played by Seward County (9-7, 5-5 KJCCC) since returning from the holiday break. The Saints went 1-2 in three games played in the Fiesta Bowl Classic in Tempe, Arizona. Seward County then returned to conference play on Wednesday at home with a 71-64 victory over Barton. Mario Whitley scored a team-high 20 points and the Saints held Barton to 32.4 percent shooting and only three 3-pointers in the victory at the Greenhouse.

The Blue Dragons have won the last six games played against Seward County, sweeping the season series last season. The Dragons won 81-66 on January 8, 2022 in Liberal and completed the sweep with a 73-59 win over the Saints on Feb. 16, 2022 at the Sports Arena.