BLUE DRAGON MEN'S BASKETBALL |
No. 17 Hutchinson (12-2, 7-1) vs. Seward County (3-11, 1-7) |
| When: Wednesday, January 10, 2024 Where: Hutchinson Sports Arena, Hutchinson, KS Tipoff: 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. X: @bluedragonsport Game Sponsor: RCB Bank BLUE DRAGON GAME NOTES (PDF Format) |
Hutchinson CC Sports Information
Now ranked No. 17 in the NJCAA, the Hutchinson Community College men's basketball team is back at the Sports Arena on Wednesday to square off for a Jayhawk Conference matchup against the Seward County Saints.
Tip-off between the Blue Dragons (12-2, 7-1 Jayhawk Conference) and Saints (3-11, 1-7 KJCCC) is set for 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday. The game will be broadcast live on Blue Dragon flagship station KHUT-FM (102.9) and sister stations KWBW-AM/FM (1450/98.5) beginning at 7:15 p.m. with Glen Grunwald (PBP) and Dan Naccarato (color). The game will also be streamed live and free on the Blue Dragon Sports Network at 7:15 p.m.
The Blue Dragons have won two in a row and 7 of their last 8 games after last Saturday's 89-56 victory over Northwest West at the Sports Arena.
Hutchinson had its second-best shooting day of the season, hitting 52.4 percent of its shots, including 8 of 20 from 3-point range. Kamryn Thomas had a team-high 16 points off the bench to lead four Blue Dragons in double figures.
Defensively, the Blue Dragons held Northwest Tech to an opponent-low 56 points. Leading by 11 points at halftime, the Blue Dragons outscored the Mavericks 47-25 in the second half. The 25 points allowed was the lowest scoring half the Dragons have allowed this season.
Since the start of conference play, the Blue Dragons have been one of the better defense teams in the Jayhawk Conference. Hutchinson is allowing 74.0 points per game and 75.2 points in KJCCC contests. Over the past two games, Hutchinson is allowing just 58.0 points and 39.6 percent shooting.
Part of that defensive success is the fact that the Blue Dragons are forcing 23.1 turnovers per game, 20.2 turnovers in KJCCC play. The Blue Dragons lead the Jayhawk Conference and rank No. 1 in the NJCAA with 14.5 steals per game.
Zoe Holman and Dallas Whitney are tied for the Jayhawk Conference lead individually in steals with 2.5 each.
Seward County enters the game on a six-game losing streak after falling to Dodge City 89-78 on Saturday in Liberal. Mathias M'Madi led the Saints with 25 points on 8 of 10 overall shooting and 9 of 10 shooting from the free-throw line.
The Saints are 1-9 over their last 10 games. The only win over that stretch of games was 73-68 over Northwest Tech on November 29.
Wednesday's game will be the 116th all-time series history that started in 1970. The Blue Dragons are 84-31 all-time against Seward County. The Blue Dragons have won the last eight games in the series, including 86-75 victory last January at the Sports Arena and 76-71 last February in Liberal.