Barton & Hutch are top overall seeds in NJCAA National Tournaments
HUTCHINSON, Kan. (KSNW) — After capturing the KJCCC Region VI tournament titles over the weekend, Barton County men and the Hutchinson women were both selected as the number-one overall seeds in next week’s National Junior College Athletic Association’s national championship tournaments.
The Barton County men beat Hutchinson 74-57 in last Saturday’s regional final in Hutchinson. The Cougars claimed their first regional title and national championship berth in 23 years. Barton’s previous regional championships came in 1991, 1999, and 2001. The Cougars (32-1) have won 23 straight games.
They won’t be the only team representing Kansas at the Hutchinson Sports Arena. Hutch (27-6) and Cowley County (27-5) earned at-large bids as well. The NJCAA men’s national championship begins Sunday in the Salt City.
The Hutch women edged Butler County 54-52 and cut down the nets for the 11th time under Head Coach John Ontjes. The Blue Dragons are 33-0, and this is the first time Hutch enters the national tournament as the overall top seed.
Dodge City will also play in the women’s national tournament, beginning next Tuesday in Casper, Wyoming.
From his view atop the ladder, after snipping the last bit of the net dangling from the rim, this is what Barton County Head Coach Jeremy Coombs saw Saturday night.
“A ton of people that love Barton. That love Barton basketball and are tremendous fans. We have a tremendous fan base, and that’s part of that blue blood,” said Coombs.
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“Natty inbounds, stay tuned,” shouted sophomore guard Cooper Jackson while the net was being cut down by his teammates.
The no. 1 ranked Cougars ran Hutchinson off its home court to win the program’s first regional title since 2001,
“I feel very good, but I know at the end of the day, we’ve still got a job to do,” said sophomore point guard Mozae Downing-Rivers. “We’re not done. We got a good chance to go get the natty, and that’s what we intend to do.”
“We worked hard for this. In our first team meeting, we set a goal to win the conference and win the regional tournament,” said sophomore forward Myles Thompson. “Obviously, the ultimate goal is the national championship, but it was a huge a huge step for us and our team.”
Thompson is from Hutchinson, and he grew up attending Hutch Blue Dragons’ games at the Sports Arena.
“It means a lot to me. I know how hard this is. I saw some great Hutch teams with all the talent in the world not win a regional championship. So, I know how hard this is. And I feel blessed right now to be able to win this with my team, and it’s been a true team effort,” he said.
Barton will be the number one team out of 24 teams that will be playing in the Hutch next week.
“Ready to win. Ready to win it all. We didn’t come this far just to come this far, so we’re ready to win it all,” said sophomore forward Stefan Spray.
Barton Athletic Director Trevor Rolfs gave Coombs a long, congratulatory hug while the Cougars celebrated their victory over Hutch. Both men are native Kansans, and they understand how difficult it is to reach to win a regional championship.
“It’s special for us too, because obviously we’re Kansas people who grew up watching the Jayhawk basketball conference. I was able to play in the Jayhawk as well. Now coaching in the Jayhawk,” said Coombs. “I’ve been in here for quite a long time as far as coaching years go. So, it’s really special to be able to represent Kansas at the national tournament.”
On the women’s side, Ontjes enjoyed cutting down the regional nets again. His Blue Dragons (33-0) enter the national tournament undefeated for the fourth time in program history.
Getting to this spot wasn’t easy. Hutch needed a driving lay-up by freshman guard Kiki Smith to edge Butler 54-52 in Saturday’s regional final.
“Like coach said, big players are built for big moments like this. And I knew that that was my moment. And that was my time to go get a bucket, and that’s what we needed. And that’s what I did,” said Smith.
Hutchinson has reached the national championship game three times under Ontjes (in 2012, 2014, and 2015), only to return home as the national runner-up all three times.
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“It’s hard to do what this group did. Go undefeated throughout the season, win the region after playing three teams three times,” said Ontjes. “So, it’s quite an accomplishment. They are something special, and we’ve got hopefully four more games left.”
Again, the women’s national tournament begins next Tuesday. Hutch earned a first-round bye and will play next Wednesday at 3:30 p.m.
The men’s championship in Hutch begins Sunday with six games. Cowley County hits the court at 12:15 p.m. on Sunday. The Blue Dragons play Monday at 12:15 p.m. No. 1 Barton received a first-round bye. The Cougars tip off the national tourney Monday at 2:30 p.m.
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