Seward County defeats No. 12 Butler 80-75

Seward County defeats No. 12 Butler 80-75

By: Kenny Hernandez

LIBERAL, Kan. - Seward County Community College defeats No. 12 Butler Community College 80-75 in their conference home opener on Saturday, November 19th. The Saints are now 4-1 on the season and 1-1 in the KJCCC with the home victory. With three minutes left, the Saints trailed 68-65 and went on a 15-7 run to claim the victory over the Grizzlies. Seward County will travel to Colby Tuesday, November 22nd, with tipoff scheduled for 7:30 p.m. CT. 

Jaylin Henderson led the Saints with 22 points and went 6-10 from the field. Blessin Kimble and Kole Scott added 14 points of their own in the win over Butler.

Seward County trailed to start the game 4-0 early in the first half as Butler took control early. The Saints got on the board with a Henderson three and started to get their offense rolling. With 15 minutes left, the Saints trailed 9-7 after a lay-up by Nathan Jones. Daeyon James knocked down a three with 13:38 left in the first half to give the Saints their first lead of the game, 12-11. 

Both teams continued to trade off baskets and a three by Cole Scott gave Seward County a 19-14 advantage with 11:41 on the clock. Henderson gave the Saints a 24-16 lead after his second three-pointer near the halfway point of the half. 

Seward County's defense continued to cause the Grizzlies trouble as the Saints went on an 8-2 run to lead 32-20 with five minutes left in the opening half. Seward County kept the Grizzlies at bay and went into halftime with a 42-31 advantage.

To start the second half, Seward county continued to stay in front as they led 50-41 after a mid-range jump shot by Mario Whitley. The Grizzlies stormed back to cut the lead down to four points, 50-46, as they went on a 6-0 run. Kole Scott connected on back-to-back jump shots to give the Saints a 57-51 lead with 11:07 left in the game. Blessin Kimble connected on a pair of free throws to give the Saints a 65-58 lead in the final eight minutes of the contest. 

Butler responded to regain the lead 68-65 with a 10-0 run at the 2:48 minute mark in the second half. After a dunk by the Grizzlies to lead 70-67, they received a technical foul that gave the Saints two free throws and the ball back. The Saints went on to make both free throws and got fouled and made one free throw to tie the game at 70-70 with two minutes left. Butler regained the lead 72-70 after a pair of free throws of their own. 

With 1:30 left in the contest, the Saints shot clock was dwindling Niko Smith stepped up and knocked down a three-pointer that gave the Saints a 73-72 advantage and momentum. In the final minute, Henderson stole a pass at half-court and dunked the ball to give Seward County a 77-72 lead, and the Greenhouse erupted for the Saints. Seward County closed the contest on a 10-5 run to defeat the Grizzlies 80-75.

Seward County will travel to Colby, Kansas, on Tuesday to take on the Trojans at 7:30 p.m.