Courtesy of HutchCC Athletics
No. 16 Hutchinson (24-5, 21-4) at Garden City (18-11, 14-9)
When: Wednesday, March 6, 2024
Where: Conestoga Arena, Garden City, KS
Time: 7:30 p.m.
Radio: KHUT-FM (102.9); KWBW-AM/FM (1450/98.5), 7:15 p.m.
-Sean Boston (play-by-play)
X: @bluedragonsport
The Hutchinson Community College men’s basketball team goes after a 25th regular-season victory and a 20th Jayhawk Conference victory on Wednesday as the Blue Dragons travel to play the Garden City Broncbusters in the final game of the 2023-24 regular season.
The No. 16-ranked Blue Dragons (24-5, 19-4 Jayhawk Conference) and sixth-place Broncbusters (18-11, 14-9 Jayhawk Conference) tip off at 7:30 p.m. at Conestoga Arena in Garden City.
The game will be broadcast live on Blue Dragon flagship station KHUT-FM (102.9) and on sister stations KWBW-AM/FM (1450/98.5) beginning at 7:15 p.m. with Sean Boston (play-by-play) calling the action. The Blue Dragon Sports Network will stream the game live at free beginning at 7:15 p.m.
Heading into the final game of the regular season, the Blue Dragons are locked into the No. 3 seed for the Region VI Tournament, which begins Saturday at sites around the state of Kansas. A Hutchinson win and a Cowley loss to Butler on Wednesday would give the Blue Dragons a tie for second place in the Jayhawk Conference with the Tigers
Hutchinson was picked to finish sixth in the KJCCC this season - but Cowley owns a tiebreaker over the Dragons for the No. 2 regional seed.
Garden City could tie Cloud County for fifth place in the KJCCC, but is locked into the sixth seed for the Region VI Tournament after losing a tiebreaker with the Thunderbirds.
Hutchinson looks to enter the postseason on a high note after falling 91-78 to No. 1-ranked Barton on Saturday in Great Bend. Playing without leading scorer Kamryn Thomas, the Blue Dragons shot 50 percent against the Cougars, but Barton had two key second-half runs to pull away in the second half. Valentino Simon had his 30th career double-double (11th as a Blue Dragon) with 20 points and 10 rebounds.
Garden City has won 3 of its last 4 games after Saturday’s 86-75 home victory over Dodge City. Brody Robinson, who is No. 2 in the NJCAA in assists, had 33 points, eight rebounds and seven assists to lead the Busters. Braxton Jones hit four 3-pointers and finished with 24 points.
The Dragons won the first meeting with Garden City this season, topping the Busters 85-64 on January 20. Thomas led Hutchinson with 22 points, hitting 4 of 6 from 3-point range. Kernan Bundy added 15 points off the bench. The Blue Dragons shot 47.7 percent from the floor. The Busters were held to 35.6 percent shooting and Robinson was held to five points and two assists. Jones had 23 points to pace the Busters.
Hutchinson’s next action will be the Region VI Quarterfinals on March 12 at the Sports Arena