Alan Hoskins, Supervisor of Public Information
Sunday, February 21, 2010
College Advancement
The most prolific three-point scorer in the Jayhawk Conference, Derick Denny hit two of the biggest of his career Saturday to help Kansas City Kansas Community College defeat Johnson County 87-75 in overtime.
The win was the 20th of the season for the Blue Devils, the third time in the last five years KCKCC has reached the 20-win mark under Coach Jon Oler. With at least three games to go, the Blue Devils are within reach of the winningest record in KCKCC history. No team has won more than the 22 games won by Coach Dan Pratt’s first two teams in 1987 and 1988.
The Blue Devils (20-8) can tie that mark this week by sweeping their final two games against Cowley County Wednesday (5-7 p.m.) and Fort Scott Saturday (2-4 p.m.) before heading into Region VI playoff action next Tuesday, March 2.
Leading 75-74 with less than two minutes in overtime, Denny drilled back-to-bach three-pointers in a span of 50 seconds for an 81-75 lead and Melvin Gatson sealed the win with four straight free throws and a layup following a steal as the Blue Devils were 4-of-4 in the extra period.
KCKCC led at halftime 41-36 only to be outscored 13-2 in the first 6½ minutes of the second half and trailed 49-43 before going back ahead 50-49 and set up a see-saw finish that saw seven ties and 16 lead changes. Three-pointers by Gatson and Denny gave KCKCC a 70-66 lead with 2:26 left but the Cavaliers pulled even with Kyle Speed drained three free throws with 18 seconds left and Gatson’s jumper for the win came up far short with two seconds to go.
All five Blue Devils scored in double figures. Denny, who was 6-of-9 from three, and Scott Fruehling, who was 5-of 10 from distance, had 18 and 17 points, respectively, to lead while Gatson added 15 points, Dennis Tinnon 14 and Andre Metoyer 11. Tinnon also had a huge game on the boards, grabbing 16 including seven offensively while Metoyer added seven and Monty Taylor five. Gatson led in assists with six while Fruehling had five and Taylor four.
KCKCC spotted Johnson County’s No. 3 ranked women a 15-0 lead in the first 7½ minutes and then played the Cavaliers even for the next 20 minutes before falling 79-52. The Cavaliers (25-3) did it with torrid outside shooting, hitting 15 of 31 three-pointers including seven by Crista Bechard and six by Emily Blakesley. Alyssa Rushton had 17 points and Sarah Craft 16 for the Blue Devils, who were outrebounded 40-24. The loss left KCKCC 15-13.