GARDEN CITY, Kan. — The first seven minutes Saturday belonged to HutchCC.
The final 33 minutes, however, were a different story.
The Dragons (12-6, 6-6) built a seven-point lead in the first seven minutes of play and looked to be in control at Conestoga Arena.
Aaron Franklin kept his hot streak going by hitting 4 of 7 field goals, including 2 of 3 three-pounters to start the contest. After one half of basketball, Franklin had 11 points.
He would finish with 16.
Garden City matched Frankin with 6-8 forward Buru Naivalurua.
Naivalarua became the sixth player this season to score 30-plus points against the Dragons.
His teammate, DaJion Humphrey, was the fifth.
Humphrey and Naivalurua combined for 65 of Garden City's 117-point total.
Humphrey shot lights out and rarely missed. He hit 9-12 field goals, including 4-5 three-pointers, and made good on 13-16 free throws to finish with 35 points.
Meanwhile, Naivalarua dropped a 30-piece and pulled down 12 rebounds, all whilst forcing Franklin to 2-7 shooting (five points) in the second half.
Franklin finished under the 17-point mark for just the second time this season (11 at Butler).
Hutchinson's lone spark came from Little River native Jayden Garrison.
Garrison came off the bench and scored a career-high 31 points in 30 minutes.
Eighteen of Garrison's 31 came in the second half. He finished the game 12-18 from the floor with an impressive 7-11 from distance.
The Broncbusters (12-5, 7-5) got six total points from their bench.
Garden City starters poured in 111 of the team's 117-point total.
Every starter scored at least 14 points on the night. The Busters shot 63.1% from the floor, 53.3% from three, and 73% from the charity stripe.
Conversely, Hutchinson shot 52%, 46.4% and 50%, respectively.
FINAL: Garden City 117 Hutchinson 97
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