NO. 11 DRAGONS KNOCK OFF NO. 3 GRIZZLIES

Hutchinson CC Sports Information

EL DORADO – The No. 11 Hutchinson Community College women's basketball team took over sole possession of first place in the Jayhawk Conference Wednesday night after returning from the holiday break with a dominant victory over No. 3 Butler at the Power Plant.

Sophomore Peyton Mosley scored eight points in a second quarter explosion that powered Hutchinson to a 73-54 victory.

Hutchinson defeated a Top 5 nationally ranked team for the first time since March 8, 2017 when the Blue Dragons defeated then-No. 4 Seward County 65-44 in the 2017 Region VI Tournament.

The Blue Dragons are now 13-0 overall and are the last remaining undefeated team in the Jayhawk Conference at 7-0. The Blue Dragons play host to Northwest Tech at 2 p.m. Saturday at the Sports Arena. Butler is now 12-1 and 6-1 in the KJCCC.

Hutchinson trailed 7-2 with 5:36 to play in the first quarter before finally getting its offense going. Trailing 9-6, Mosley hit her first 3-point attempt to tie the game with 1:48 to play in the first quarter, and then Journey Armstead's layup with 13 seconds left in the period gave Hutchinson an 11-10 lead after the first quarter.

The Blue Dragons exploded in the second quarter, outscoring Butler 28-4 over the first 9 1/2 minutes of the second quarter. Hutchinson shot 71.4 percent (10 of 14) and was 5 of 5 from 3-point distance in the second stanza. Butler was just 3 of 13 in the second quarters and committed seven turnovers.

Mosley scored eight point in the second quarter to lead the Dragons. She had two 3-pointers, while Hailey Jackson, Jada Pleasant and Bree Horyna also sank 3-pointers in the period.

Leading 23-14 with 5:22 to play in the period, the Blue Dragons went on a 16-0 run over a span of 5 minutes, 7 seconds to build a game-high 25-point lead at 39-14 with 18 seconds to play. Butler's Freddie Wallace hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer to cut the Dragon lead to 39-17 at halftime.

The Blue Dragon lead dwindled to 12 points at 51-39 with 9:43 to play in the fourth quarter, but Hutchinson answered with a 7-0 run capped by a Mosley 3-pointer with 6:03 to play for a 58-39 lead.

Mosley led the Blue Dragons with a team- and career-high 16 points on 6 of 7 shooting, going 4 of 5 from 3-point range. Mosley added a season-high four assists.

Kiki Smith finished with 15 points with five assists and four steals. Jackson had 12 points and nine rebounds. Monae Duffy had her second double-double of the season with 10 points and 12 rebounds. Armstead had eight points.

The Blue Dragons finished shooting 43.5 percent overall (27 of 62), hitting 8 of 24 from 3-point range and 11 of 20 from the foul line. The Dragons had a slim 41-40 rebounding advantage. The Dragons had 20 assists and 10 steals to only 10 turnovers.

Wallace had 18 points and eight rebounds to lead the Grizzlies. Randi Harding had 12 points and Maycee James finished with 10.

The Grizzlies were held to a season-low offensive point total shooting 32.3 percent overall (20 of 62). Butler was 6 of 17 from 3-point range and 8 of 22 from the foul line. Butler had 19 turnovers.

The Blue Dragons trailed 9-4 early, but got going with a 13-1 run, holding Butler without a field goal for 7 minutes, 35 seconds. Jackson hit a 3-pointerwith 8:33 to play in the second quarter for a 17-10 lead.

Hutchinson increased that run to 19-3 after a Mosley transition layup that gave the Dragons a 23-12 lead with 5:29 to play in the quarter. A Wallace layup stopped that Hutchinson run, but the Dragons went on a score 16 unanswered points in the final 5 minutes of the quarter, building a 39-14 lead after an Akaysha Muggeridge layup with 18 seconds to play in the period.

The Blue Dragons were outscored 19-12 in the third quarter and the lead was cut to 12 at 51-39 after a Harding 3-pointer with 9:43 to play in the fourth quarter. The Dragons regained control with a 7-0 run that drew to 9-2 after a Duffy putback with 7:11 to play gave the Dragons a 60-41 lead.

GAME NOTES – Hutchinson snapped a three-game losing streak to Butler. … The Blue Dragons are 60-34 all-time against Butler, 30-17 in games played in El Dorado. … Hutchinson head coach John Ontjes won his 50th game against nationally ranked foes. He is 50-24 all-time against ranked opponents. … The 13-0 start by the Dragon is the ninth-best start in program history. … Hutchinson had its fourth game this season with 10 or fewer turnovers. … Kiki Smith had her 13th-straight game scoring in double figures. … The Dragons outscored Butler 26-7 in points off turnovers.