by Alan Hoskins, KCKCC
An already frustrating season didn’t get any better for Kansas City Kansas Community College’s short-handed Blue Devils Saturday.
Frank Royles, a 6-1 sophomore guard from Cincinnati, Ohio, hit a heavily contested 3-point jump shot from NBA range at the horn to rally Labette to a 53-52 win in Parsons.
“I thought it was good when it left his hand,” Labette coach Jerrod Stanford said. “At first I was mad at him for not shooting the first look he had. That was open. But I guess he didn’t feel comfortable without three people chasing him in his face.”
The loss sends sixth-seeded KCKCC (8-22) to No. 3 seeded Fort Scott (19-11) Wednesday at 7 p.m. in the opening round of the NJCAA Region VI Division II playoffs. The winner will advance to semifinal play at Highland Saturday.
Three Blue Devils scored in double figures at Labette. Malcolm Tate led with 14 points including a trio of 3-pointers. Juwan Davenport added 13 points and five rebounds and Tyson Beringer 10 points, seven rebounds and two blocked shots. Josiah Laws led the rebounding with eight along with six points.
“We played very well and has our chance to win,” KCKCC coach Kelley Newton said. “This is all we can ask for. Very proud of our guys.”
“Their (KCKCC) record is deceiving,” Stanford said. “They played Johnson County to six points, They’re a good team that plays different zones so you have to execute over length and size. That’s a huge win for us to play that way and win an ugly game.”
A see-saw battle, Labette held a 26-25 lead at halftime but it was KCKCC with a 52-50 lead before Royles’ buzzer-beater.
“It looked off,” Royles said. “It was just too long, like I shot it too high. But it got up and just dropped.”
KCKCC had three more field goals than Labette, cashing in on 22-of-50 for 44 percent to 19-of-48 and 39.6 percent for the Cardinals. The Blue Devils also had a 31-30 rebounding edge but Labette had two more 3-pointers (6-4) and made 9-of-14 free throws to 4-of-5 for KCKCC. The Blue Devils also had three more turnovers (16-13).
Johnson County (17-13) claimed the Region VI championship with a 9-1 record despite being upset by Hesston 79-78 at home Saturday. A 78-71 winner over Fort Scott, Highland (23-7) finished second at 8-2 followed by Fort Scott (5-5), Labette (4-6), Hesston (3-7) and KCKCC (1-9). Labette (14-16) hosts Hesston (15-11) in Wednesday’s other first round playoff game.