by Alan Hoskins
Kelley Newton continues to get standout performances from different sources as his hot-shooting Kansas City Kansas Community College Blue Devils stretched their current winning streak to three with a 94-59 win over Westminster JV Friday night.
Shooting 55 percent from the field, the Blue Devils boosted their record to 7-5 heading into a rematch with Iowa Western Tuesday in Council Bluffs. KCKCC then closes out the pre-holiday season with a home contest with North Central Friday.
Sophomore sharpshooter Armonti Shorter stepped front and center against Westminster, nailing a perfect 5-for-5 three-pointers en route to a career high 19 points along with five rebounds.
“It was really good to see the ball go in,” Newton said. “He’s been stressing out on his shooting because he can really shoot. It was also good to see him get five rebounds in just 14 minutes. That shows he was active.”
Joe Lendway, who missed only one of eight shots, added 15 points to pace four starters in double figures. Xavier Gaona scored 13 points before going down with an ankle injury while Jonathan Murray added 12 and Mike Lee 11.
Lansing freshman Trevor Young came off the bench to lead in assists with six and share the lead in rebounds with Murray with seven. Lee and Kellan Turner added four assists as the Blue Devils had 25 assists on 33 field goals. After a slow start, the Blue Devils shot 53.6 percent in taking a 42-25 lead at halftime and shot even better the second half (.563).
“We’re learning to play hard, play together and with enthusiasm,” Newton said. “We shot the ball well but we still need to get better defensively. Our rotations are a little slow and we lose our focus level some but overall we’re getting better.”
Alan Hoskins is the sports information director for KCKCC.