Roadrunners Basketball Recaps Jan. 7-12

Jan. 7 Graceland University Junior Varsity at Sedalia

The State Fair Community College (SFCC) Roadrunners opened the second semester with a 90-45 victory over the Graceland University Junior Varsity Yellowjackets from Lamoni, Iowa on Tuesday, Jan. 7 inside the Fred E. Davis Multipurpose Center.

SFCC jumped out to a 17-5 lead with 11 minutes and 24 seconds remaining in the first half and never looked back.

Sophomore guard Malcolm Townsel of Chicago, Illinois led a balanced scoring attack with 17 points. Redshirt freshman guard Nate McClure of Houston, Texas chipped in with 16 points. Freshman forward Michael Wright of Chicago, Illinois contributed 14 points. Sophomore guard Kailleb Walton-Blanden of Rapid City, South Dakota added 12 points. Freshman forward Kohen Thompson of Memphis, Tennessee was the fifth Roadrunner in double figures with 10 points. Redshirt freshman forward Dimitri Georgiadis of Richmond, Virginia and Sarion McGee of Milwaukee, Wisconsin tied for the team lead in rebounds with eight. Sophomore guard Damaria Franklin of Chicago, Illinois dished out a team-high five assists. Freshman guard John Egbuta of Bronx, New York led the team in steals with five.

"I think Trent Lyles is going to help us," said Head Coach Matt Brown. (Lyles made his first appearance as a Roadrunner tonight.) "He moves the ball up the floor and passes well. We have more guys who are shooting the ball and scoring it. Overall, we got a lot of good minutes from a lot of guys."

Jan.12 Three Rivers Community College at Sedalia

The Roadrunners (11-7, 0-1 in Region 16, 2-1 in the MCCAC) opened their Region 16 schedule with a hard-fought 79-74 loss at home to the Three Rivers Community College Raiders from Poplar Bluff.

SFCC jumped out to an 18 point lead in the first half. The Raiders trimmed the lead to seven points at halftime. Three Rivers tied the game at 52 with 12 minutes remaining in the contest. The Raiders took a two-point lead with 11 minutes and 40 seconds remaining. The Raiders made the plays in the final minutes to secure the victory.

Franklin registered a double-double with 34 points and 10 rebounds to lead his team in both categories. He also registered two blocked shots to tie for the team lead with Georgiadis and Thompson. Walton-Blanden chipped in with 16 points and a team-high eight assists. Townsel added 10 points.

"Rebounding was the difference in the game," said Brown. "Three Rivers kicked our tails on the backboards. They were more physical and hungrier. When you're up 18 points and don't compete, that's not good. I'll take responsibility for that. We have to get a lot tougher."

David Rohrbach

SFCC Athletics