Roadrunners Basketball Recaps Nov. 5-9

Nov. 5 Metropolitan Community College at Sedalia

The State Fair Community College (SFCC) Roadrunners defeated the Metropolitan Community College (Kansas City) Wolves 93-74 on Tuesday, Nov. 5 inside the Fred E. Davis Multipurpose Center.

The game featured only three lead changes and two ties. SFCC took a 37-31 lead into halftime. The Roadrunners extended their advantage to 19 points in the second half to help secure the victory.

Sophomore guard Damaria Franklin of Chicago, Illinois led a balanced scoring attack with 30 points and six assists (tied team-high). Malcolm Townsel of Chicago, Illinois had 18 points and six assists. Freshman forward Lual Akot of Ottawa, Canada added 13 points, eight rebounds (team-high), and three steals (team-high). Sophomore guard Kailleb Walton-Blanden of Rapid City, South Dakota and redshirt freshman forward Sarion McGee of Milwaukee, Wisconsin pitched in with 10 points each. Redshirt freshman forward Dimitri Georgiadis of Richmond, Virginia led the team in blocked shots with two.

"We were able to play a lot of different guys tonight," said Roadrunners Basketball Head Coach Matt Brown. "Metropolitan Community College always has a bunch of tough kids who are undersized and physical. It was a good win for us. We did a better job from the free-throw line. Our assist to turnover ratio was positive. We have to keep staying positive and moving forward."

Nov. 8 Iowa Western Community College at Sedalia Missouri

SFCC defeated Iowa Western Community College in the first Iowa-Missouri Challenge 80-58 at the Fred E. Davis Multipurpose Center on Friday, Nov.8.

The Roadrunners shot out to an early 20-10 advantage with less than 13 minutes remaining in the opening half. It was an advantage they would never surrender.

Iowa Western cut the advantage to 11 in the second half, but SFCC had an answer.

"We wanted to get the ball inside early," said Brown. "Sarion and Dimitri combined to give us a good post presence. Then we were able to hit some outside shots off of that. Our guys got out to a big lead. We have struggled closing out games going back to the preseason. Tonight, we were able to close the game out against a good Iowa Western team."

Franklin led three Roadrunners in double figures with 15 points. He also tied for the team lead in assists with seven. Walton-Blanden contributed 14 points. Townsel pitched in with 10 points. Akot and Georgiadis tied for the team lead in rebounds, pulling down 10 each. Redshirt freshman guard Nate McClure tied for the team lead in assists dishing out seven and two steals.

Nov. 9 Indian Hills Community College at Sedalia

SFCC (3-2) lost 74-61 to the ninth-ranked Indian Hills Community College Warriors in the final game of the Iowa-Missouri Challenge on Saturday, Nov. 9 inside the Fred E. Davis Multipurpose Center. The game featured 10 lead changes and 10 ties.

Indian Hills jumped out to an early 9-2 lead to begin the contest. SFCC fought back to take a 31-29 lead into halftime. SFCC stormed out of the locker room with a 9-2 run to take a 40-31 lead with less than 17 minutes remaining in the contest.

The Warriors would take a five-point lead with 11 minutes remaining in the game. SFCC would continue to battle, but the Warriors made the plays down the stretch to secure the victory.

"Our guys were excited for the game," said Brown. "Indian Hills is a really good team. I'm proud of our kids, they fought very hard. We learned a lot about our team this weekend. I think our team will be very competitive in our league."

Walton-Blanden led SFCC in scoring with 20 points. Akot contributed 19 points. Franklin dished out a team-high six assists and tied for the team lead in steals with three. Townsel also tied for the team lead in steals. Franklin and McGee tied for the team lead in rebounds with six.

David Rohrbach

SFCC Athletics