Month: February 2022

KCKCC men throttle Fort Scott to advance in regional tourney

The KCKCC Blue Devils defeated Fort Scott 89-69 on Monday night, and KCKCC will advance to the regional tournament Wednesday against Johnson County. (KCKCC photo)

by Tyler Scott, KCKCC sports information director

The No. 3 seed KCKCC men’s basketball team finished off No. 6 seed Fort Scott Community College 89-69 for the season series, with their third win over the Greyhounds.

KCKCC is now 21-9 overall on the year and will face No. 2 seed Johnson County Community College in the Region VI semifinals.

Bryce Johnson and Caleb Jones capped off an early run for the Blue Devils in the first half with a three-pointer and layup, to give the team a 12-7 lead.

The shooting was a huge factor for KCKCC later on as the Blue Devils’ lead ballooned to 15 points after Joshua Dames and Cortez Howlett hit back-to-back three-pointers. KCKCC closes out the first half on an 11-4 run and took a 43-24 lead.

Fort Scott Community College climbed back briefly, but the Blue Devils still held on to a double-digit advantage. The lead for the Blue Devils reached 22 points with 9:43 remaining after a long-range shot from Dames, and he later connected on another three-pointer at the 5:02 mark.

KCKCC led Fort Scott 79-52 and never looked back. Dames hit four three-pointers in the game to give the team 10 total.

Dames and Joshua Butler led the team with 14 points each and Bradley Lightbourne grabbed a team-leading seven rebounds.

The Blue Devils will next play the Cavaliers on Wednesday in Overland Park, Kansas. Tipoff for the game is to be announced.

KCKCC women survive against Neosho, advance in regional tournament

The KCKCC women’s basketball team won 70-57 over Neosho County Community College Monday. The Blue Devils advance to the regional semifinals to play Johnson County Community College on Wednesday in Overland Park. (Photo from KCKCC)

by Tyler Scott, KCKCC sports information director

The No. 4 seeded KCKCC women’s basketball team was able to advance past No. 5 seed Neosho County Community College Monday night inside the KCKCC Fieldhouse, with a 70-57 win.

The Blue Devils had four players in double-figures led by a double-double from De’Jaria Guillory, who had 17 points and 11 rebounds.

The Blue Devils are now 16-7 overall and advance to the Region VI Semifinals against No. 1 seed Johnson County Community College.

Guillory and Ikia Elam both connected on baskets to give the Blue Devils a 4-0 lead before going on a 6-0 run to lead 10-4 after Neosho CC tied the score at 4-4. KCKCC kept the momentum and led 19-15 after the first quarter. Neosho would take the lead in the second quarter with a 24-21 score, but the Blue Devils quickly erased the deficit and closed the quarter on a 15-5 run after Guillory hit a three-point shot – giving the Blue Devils a 36-29 advantage.

The onslaught continued for KCKCC as the Blue Devils built a 16-point lead five minutes into the third quarter at 49-33 after Faith Putz hit a layup.

More scoring was in store for the Blue Devils as they would take a 57-41 lead after the third period. The Blue Devils kept the pressure on Neosho and wound up with the 70-57 win.

Putz had 16 points, while Lacy Whitcomb and Mercer Roberts added 11 and 10 points.

The Blue Devils will next face the Johnson County Cavaliers on Wednesday night in Overland Park, Kansas. Tipoff for the game is to be announced.

UG plans to reallocate Park Drive improvement funds to repair domestic shelter roof

A plan to reallocate $400,000 from the Park Drive Neighborhood Revitalization project to the Friends of Yates Domestic Violence shelter repair moved ahead at Monday night’s Unified Government Administration and Human Services Committee meeting.

Wilba Miller, director of Community Development, said $570,000 had been set aside last year for the Park Drive revitalization effort.

However, she said she received word from the domestic violence shelter that they needed a roof badly. It is the only domestic violence shelter located in Kansas City, Kansas, according to the UG authorities.

Miller recommended reallocating the Park Drive funding to the life-saving services of the domestic violence shelter emergency repair project. Currently, the UG is the only funding source for the roof repair, according to Miller.

The remaining $170,000 left in the fund would go to the Neighborhood Revitalization project to install a new disc golf course at City Park, she said.

A public hearing may be held March 31, with a 30-day comment period, she said.

If approved, this change in the plans for the funding would have to be submitted to the Housing and Urban Development Department for approval, she said. The category for funding would be the same, a public facility improvement, she said.

If the roof repair did not require the entire $400,000, the leftover funds would be redirected back to the City Park project, according to Miller.

The motion passed the UG Committee unanimously and will go to the full UG Commission for approval.