by Alan Hoskins, KCKCC
Kansas City Kansas Community College got some standout performances Friday but not quite enough to prevent North Arkansas to leave the KCKCC Field House with a 91-84 win.
The Blue Devils get a chance to bounce right back today when they play Washburn JV in Topeka at noon before finishing their pre-holiday home season against Iowa Western Tuesday at 7 p.m. The KCKCC women also play their final home game before the holiday break Monday when they are host to Saint Mary JV at 7 p.m.
Four Blue Devils scored in double figures and two others just missed but it wasn’t enough to overcome a dazzling all-around performance by North Ark’s Jalen Olds, who just missed a triple double with 28 points, 10 rebounds and 8 assists. A 6-5 sophomore from Canton, Ohio, 21 of Olds’ 28 points came in the second half when the Pioneers erased a 45-42 halftime deficit.
North Ark built an 11-point lead early in the second half only to have Daniel Kingcannon come off the bench with spectacular shooting to cut the lead to 74-72. A 6-3 freshman from Highland Park in Topeka, Kingcannon scored 16 points in a six-minute stretch that included 4-of-4 three-pointers and 6-of-7 from the field, all career bests.
Sophomore center Jon Murray led the Blue Devils with his tenth double double of the season, 17 points and 15 rebounds in 25 minutes; Kellen Turner was a terror defensively with a career high eight steals and 14 points; and Mike Lee Jr. had nine assists to go along with 13 points and seven rebounds.
The Blue Devils had 22 assists on 31 field goals with Garrick McCuller adding five and Turner four. They also were guilty of only 12 turnovers while forcing North Ark into 15 and stayed almost even on the boards against the taller Pioneers (46-44) but managed only 35.7 percent second half shooting to 47.2 percent for North Ark (6-4). North Ark also won the first meeting of the two teams 96-85.