DRAGONS RALLY LATE TO TOP GRIZZLIES IN TOP 25 BATTLE

Hutchinson CC Sports Information

EL DORADO – The No. 21-ranked Hutchinson Community College men's basketball team rallied from down five points in the final 4:08 Wednesday night to earn an NJCAA Top 25 victory over No. 17 Butler at the Power Plant.

Kamryn Thomas hit a go-ahead 3-pointer with 38 seconds left to complete the Blue Dragon comeback as Hutchinson defeated Butler 63-60 in both teams' return from the holiday break.

The Blue Dragons improved to 11-2 overall and 6-1 in the Jayhawk Conference. The Dragons return to the Sports Arena at 4 p.m. on Saturday to take on Northwest Tech. Butler dropped to 10-3 overall and 5-2 in the KJCCC.

Hutchinson had leads as large as 10 points in the first half and led 30-25 at halftime. The Grizzlies surged early in the second half and built a 50-41 lead with 8:09 to play.

The Dragons outscored Butler 22-10 over the remainder of the game with Thomas scoring 10 points over that span to lead the Hutchinson comeback. But the Dragons still trailed 61-56 with 4:08 to play.

Thomas started the final comeback with a jumper with 3:40 to play and hit two free throws with 3:02 to go to cut the Dragon deficit to 56-55. Trailing 58-57, Valentino Simon hit a 17-foot jumper with 1:07 left to give Hutchinson a 59-58 lead. A Jason Drake bucket with 47 seconds left gave the Grizzlies a one-point lead, but Thomas grabbed the lead right back with a 3-point goal with 38 seconds to play for a 62-60 lead. J.P. Ricks hit 1 of 2 free throws with 18 seconds left for a 63-60 lead. The Dragons survived two missed free throws second left and Butler's Amare Haynie just missed a halfcourt heave at the buzzer.

Thomas led all scorers with 21 points on 7 of 14 shooting, including 3 of 8 from 3-point range to lead the Blue Dragons. Thomas had seven rebounds and four assists.

Dre Weathers had five of his 10 points in Hutchinson's late comeback. He added seven rebounds and a blocked shot. Simon finished with nine points and five rebounds. Kernan Bundy had seven points.

The Blue Dragons shot 40.7 percent for the game (24 of 59). The Dragons were just 4 of 16 from 3-point range and 11 of 22 from the foul line. The Dragons were outrebounded 35-33, but committed only 14 turnovers to Butler's 18.

Jamichael Stillwell had a double-double with 16 points and 12 rebounds to lead the Grizzlies. Charles McClennehan Jr. had 15 points and Kaleb Washington had 12 points.

Butler shot 43.8 percent (21 of 48), hitting 5 of 14 from 3-point range and 13 of 23 from the free-throw line.

The Blue Dragons shot 46.4 percent from the floor in the first half and held Butler to 35.0 percent as Hutchinson led 30-25 at halftime.

Butler scored the first five points of the game and the first Hutchinson points didn't come until 16:58 mark on a Weathers' three-point play. The Dragons took their first lead when Bundy drained a 3-pointer with 15:27 to play to lead 8-7. Hutchinson's lead grew to 13-7 after a Thomas bucket with 14:14 to play.

Leading 13-12, the Dragons went on to build its largest lead of the game with a 12-3 run over the next 5:52. A Simon fastbreak layup with 6:55 to play gave the Dragons a 25-15 lead. Butler went on a 7-0 run to pull within 25-22, but Bundy and Kobe Smith scored on back-to-back possessions for a 29-22 lead with 2:37 to play in the half.

Hutchinson led 30-25 at halftime.

The Blue Dragons had another slow offensive start in the second half, tying the game at 32-all after a Washington transition layup with 16:30 to play. The game stayed within a three-point spread for either team for the next 5 minutes.

With the game tied at 39 with 11:06 to play, Butler went on a 11-2 run and led 50-41 after a Haynie basket with 8:05 to play. A Weathers putback with 7:47 to play started the Blue Dragon comeback.

GAME NOTES – The Blue Dragons are now 2-1 against ranked opponents this season. … The Dragons are now 129-69 all-time against Butler, including 50-42 in games played in El Dorado. … The Dragons improved to 7-10 against ranked competition in the Tommy DeSalme era. … This was all-time win No. 1,905 for the Blue Dragons. … Kamryn Thomas has led the Blue Dragons in scoring six times this season and had his third 20-point game. … Zoe Holman had a career-high five steals. … The Dragons are 10-0 when leading at halftime this season.