The Hutchinson Community College men’s basketball team ran its Quarterback Classic record to 2-0 Friday night at the Sports Arena, holding its opponent to less than 28-percent shooting for the second-straight night in a 75-54 victory over Division II, No. 5 Parkland College.
The Blue Dragons (2-0) limited Parkland to 27.9 percent shooting (17 of 61) one night after the Cobras upset Central Florida 73-70. The Blue Dragons forced 22 turnovers, 10 were by steals.
“We start defense as early as possible,” sophomore forward Ryan Schultz said. “Coach stresses defense, telling us about getting down, stopping our man and getting the rebound. It’s the most important part of the game.”
“Actually, it could have been in the 40s (for the game) if we hadn’t turned the ball over and they scored on some layups,” HCC coach Steve Eck said about Parkland’s point total. “But the guys got after it on defense tonight. We got a little sluggish there for awhile, and Parkland didn’t give in because they’re a good team.”
Freshman Anthony Thomas posted his first career double-double with 24 points and 12 rebounds to lead the Blue Dragons (2-0). Thomas hit on 8 of 15 shots.
Mark Braden and A.J. Spencer both scored in double figures for the second-straight night. Braden finished with 13 points and Spencer added 11. Schultz finished with eight points and nine rebounds.
The Blue Dragons shot 43.5 percent (27 of 62), shooting just 2 of 13 from 3-point range. After shooting just 38.5 percent in the first half, HCC improved to 50 percent in the second half (14-of-28).
“It’s a work on progress,” Eck said about the offense. “We’ve got to find ball movers, not ball stoppers.”
Hutchinson out-rebounded Parkland 54-40, but turned the ball over 19 times, 13 times in the second half.
Tiger O’Neal had 18 points, while Shaquille Lowery had 11 to lead the Cobras. Parkland hit 7 of 26 from long range and 13 of 21 from the foul line.
The final 9 ½ minutes of the first half proved to be the decisive stretch of the game.
Neither team got a lot done offensively in the first 10 ½ minutes of the opening half, with the score tied at 12-12. The Blue Dragons went on a 13-0 run over the next four minutes. Thomas hit a 3-pointer and two free throws during the run to boost the Dragons to a 25-12 lead with 5:41 to play.
Parkland went scoreless for 4 minutes, 8 seconds and only scored seven points in the final 9:38 of the half as Hutchinson outscored the Cobras 19-7 to lead 33-19 at halftime.
That run increased to 27-9 early in the second half with a Braden free throw that lifted the Blue Dragons to a 41:19 lead with 17:51 to play.
HCC’s largest lead was 24 points at 50-26 with a little more than 13 seconds remaining in the game.
The Blue Dragons will close out the Quarterback Classic on Saturday night with game against Central Florida at 7:30 p.m. Central Florida defeated Fort Scott 68-55 on Friday. Parkland and Fort Scott will play at 3:30 p.m.