DRAGONS START SLOW, ADVANCES TO NJCAA 2ND ROUND

Russell Branch hits a first-half 3-pointer to spark the Blue Dragons to a 96-82 victory over USC Salkehatchie on Monday in the opening round of the NJCAA Tournament at the Sports Arena. (Andrew Carpenter/Digital Fox Photography)

March 25, 2024

Hutchinson CC Sports Information

Trailing by as many as 11 points in the opening half, the No. 16-ranked Hutchinson Community College men's basketball team got its offense going and defeated USC Salkehatchie 96-82 in the opening round of the 2024 NJCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament on Monday at the Sports Arena.

Winning their seventh-straight NJCAA Tournament-opening game, the No. 11-seeded Blue Dragons (28-6) advances to the second round and will play sixth-seeded Chipola (29-4) at 7:15 p.m. Tuesday at the Sports Arena. USC Salkehatchie ends its season at 20-14.

The Blue Dragons started missing 9 of their first 13 shot attempts and a 9-0 Indian run gave USC Salk leads of 24-13 and 26-15 in the first half.

Russell Branch gave the Blue Dragons a spark off the bench. His drive to the hoop for a basket with 10:55 to play in the opening half sparked 22-5 run that saw the Dragons overtake USC Salk for a 37-31 lead. Branch scored 10 of his 12 points in the first half as Hutchinson rallied to lead 50-43 at halftime.

Kamryn Thomas and Kernan Bundy had 20 points each to pace a balanced Blue Dragon offense.

Thomas hit 4 of 8 3-pointers and was 8 of 11 from the free-throw line to lead the Dragons. Thomas had a team-high nine rebounds and had two assists and two blocked shots.

Bundy led a 43-16 scoring advantage off the bench with a postseason career high 20 points. He had five rebounds.

Landon Wagler scored 11 points for the Blue Dragons. Valentino Simon had nine points and Dre Weathers finished with seven points.

The Blue Dragons finished the game shooting 43.7 percent (31 of 71), hitting 11 of 32 3-point goals and 23 of 30 from the free-throw line.

The Dragons were a minus-9 in rebounding margin in the first half, but was a plus-8 in the second half to be outrebounded 40-39. The Dragons allowed 16 offensive rebounds in the first half, but only three offensive boards in the final 20 minutes.

The Dragons had only seven turnovers, forcing 19 USC Salk turnovers. The Dragons had a 33-14 scoring advantage in points off turnovers.

The Blue Dragons had to overcome the hot shooting of Indian guard Grayson Kirk, who buried an opponent season-high six 3-pointers to finish with 32 points. Jai'Vian Chisholm hit four 3-pointers and finished with 21 points.

The Indians shot 47.6 percent overall (30 of 63), hitting 12 of 26 from distance and 10 of 18 from the free-thrown line.

Chisholm's 3-pointer at the 11:17 mark of the first half gave the Blue Dragons a 26-15 lead. J.P. Ricks hit a 3-pointer and the Blue Dragons went on to score 12 unanswered points, taking their first lead on a Wagler putback for a 27-26 lead with 8:05 to play in the half.

USC Salk led 31-29, but the Dragons regained the lead for good with free throws from Bundy and JoJo Adeoye. Bundy added a field goal and two more free throws to lead 27-21 with 4:05 remaining.

Wagler buried a 3 with 39 seconds left for a 48-37 lead, but the Indians scored five quick points to pull within 48-43. Thomas made two free throws with 1.1 seconds to go and Hutchinson led 50-43 at intermission.

The Blue Dragons used to big runs in the second half to take command.

Hutchinson started the half on a 7-0 run to lead 57-43 on a Simon three-point play. Then leading by 13, the Dragons were able to double that lead with a 13-0 run capped by a Adeoye transition dunk for a 79-53 lead.

GAME NOTES – The Blue Dragons are now 15-5 in opening-round NJCAA Tournament games, 52-27 all-time in the NJCAA Tournament and have a 208-86 all-time postseason record. … The Blue Dragons are 6-0 this season in games following a loss. … The 2023-24 Blue Dragons have 252 three-pointers this season, which ranked No. 3 all-time in Hutchinson single-season history. In head coach Tommy DeSalme's first three seasons, his teams rank Nos. 1, 2 and 3 in single-season 3-pointers in team history. … This was all-time win No. 1,922. … With seven assists on Monday, J.P. Ricks moves into the single-season Top 10 for assists, now tied for ninth with James 'Papi' Conley with 158 assists. … This was Kamryn Thomas' 10th 20-point game this season. … The Blue Dragons are now 3-0 all-time against District 10 teams, including two wins coming in the NJCAA Tournament.