HUTCHINSON - Limited to zero bench points and facing a 24-14 deficit in points off turnovers, the Cloud County Community College women's basketball team would be dealt a 79-59 road loss to Hutchinson Community College inside the Hutchinson Sports Arena on Wednesday.
The loss puts Cloud County at 10-9 overall and 6-7 in the Kansas Jayhawk Community College Conference while Hutchinson remains in sole possession of second place in the KJCCC with a 16-4 overall record and 10-4 mark in conference play.
Matching the cold temperatures outside in the opening minutes of the contest, points would be at a premium as a three-point field goal from Hutchinson would be the lone field goal made in the opening three minutes of the contest. Following a pair of Rori Cox free throws, the T-Birds would then get buckets from Te Araroa Sopoaga and Kay Hauata Phillips to take a 6-3 lead that would hold through the next four minutes of action. The Blue Dragons would connect on a pair of free throws of their own to pull within one at 6-5 and then get a layup from Tor'e Alford to go back up before seeing freshman Paula Puzule connect on a triple to put CCCC back up 9-7. The final 2:16 of the opening quarter would be all Hutchinson however as the final nine points of the quarter would be scored by HCC to put the Blue Dragons up 16-9 after 10 minutes of action.
The Hutchinson run would extend into the second quarter with a pair of free throws before seeing Sopoaga end the run with a layup as Cloud County would keep the deficit within five at 20-15 with 7:16 left in the first half. Another Hutchinson run would turn the five-point game into a 15-point Blue Dragon lead as the T-Bird offense would go nine straight offensive possessions without scoring. Cutting into the lead slightly, CCCC would score seven of the final 11 points of the half to trail 35-22 going into halftime.
A defensive stop to open the third quarter to go along with a drive to the hoop would lead to another two free throws for Cox to cut into the Hutchinson lead further and make it 35-24 in the opening minute of the second half, but the Blue Dragons would manage to score the next 10 points to take a 21-point lead with 4:27 left in the third quarter. The 20-plus point lead would be slowly cut into by the T-Birds over the remaining four minutes of the period as the free-throw line would play a key component to the CCCC offense which allowed Cloud County to get back within 15 at 51-36, but three free throws in the final minute for Hutchinson would put things back at an 18-point deficit heading to the fourth.
Needing to make a big run to try and close the gap and put themselves in an opportunity to put pressure on host HCC, Cloud County would manage to cut the deficit down to 15 one final time with a Puzule three to make it 56-41, but a 7-2 spurt for Hutchinson would push things back out to a 21-point deficit with just under seven minutes left. From that point forward, CCCC would not be able to get any closer than 16 down the stretch as the Blue Dragons would hold the T-Birds under 60 points for just the second time this year.
Low shooting percentages for both teams would see Cloud County shoot 33.3 percent (21-of-63) from the field and five-of-22 (22.7 percent) from the floor despite hitting 12-of-14 (85.7 percent) of their free throws while Hutchinson shot 35.4 percent (23-of-65) from the field and 36.0 percent (nine-of-25) from beyond the arc. A deadlock 43-43 tie in the rebounding column would see CCCC grab 13 offensive rebounds compared to 16 for HCC as each team would also record 12 second-chance points.
Game-highs from both Cox and Sopoaga would account for 40 of the 59 total points for Cloud County with the two each scoring 20 points and combining to go 12-of-14 from the free-throw line and grabbing 19 total rebounds. 12 of the rebounds would be hauled in by Cox for her second double-double of the year while setting new career-highs in free throws made (10). Hutchinson was led by a team-best 17 points from Alford and 16 points from reigning KJCCC Player of the Week Mele Kailahi.
What's next?
A three-game week concludes on Saturday for the T-Birds as Cloud County will head to Independence, to take on the league-leading Pirates at 2 p.m. Independence has won eight of their last 10 games following a 73-60 win over Colby on Wednesday night and is currently ranked No. 24 in the latest NJCAA Division I Top-25 Poll.
Jan 20, 2022
Cloud County women held in check in Hutchinson
Posted Jan 20, 2022 1:50 PM