The State Fair Community College Roadrunners picked up a thrilling double overtime victory at home, 86-75 against Mineral Area College inside the Fred E. Davis Multipurpose Center on Wednesday, Jan. 15. The game, which featured 12 lead changes, was part of the Region 16 and Missouri Community College Athletic Conference schedule for both teams. 

 

Mineral Area led 31-30 at halftime and pushed the lead to 45-41 with less than 12 minutes remaining in regulation. SFCC cut the deficit to one point off a rebound and bucket from freshman forward Daniel Garza.

 

SFCC led 55-54 with less than three minutes remaining. Mineral Area cut the SFCC advantage to one at 57-56 with 1:50 remaining. Sophomore guard/forward Jon Brandtner knocked down a big shot to put SFCC ahead 60-58 with a minute remaining. The Roadrunners got a defensive stop on the ensuing possession, but SFCC committed a turnover, which gave Mineral Area the ball with 27 seconds remaining.

 

Later with his team up by one point, Sophomore guard Alex Gunnels stepped to the free-throw line and knocked down a pair of big free throws to put SFCC up 62-59 with about 17 seconds remaining in regulation. Mineral Area tied the game knocking down a three-point shot while falling out of bounds with 11.7 seconds left in the game.

 

The game went to overtime tied at 62. Both teams scored 10 points in the first overtime to send the game to a second overtime.

 

SFCC did the job defensively in the second overtime. The Roadrunners outscored Mineral Area 14-3 including several big shots from sophomore forward Sam Bradford who was the offensive star of the night for SFCC.

 

Bradford went 12 of 26 from the field and earned a double-double with 36 points and a team-high 17 rebounds. Bradfords also went two of six from beyond the three-point arc, and 10 of 12 from the free-throw line in his impressive performance. Bradford also registered four assists, four steals, and two blocked shots. Gunnels added 14 points and a team-high six assists. Garza chipped in with 12 points. Freshman guard Tyson Mobley led the team with five steals. Sophomore forward Chin Hanson pulled down 13 rebounds. As a team, the Roadrunners shot 83% from the free-throw line and had 19 assists to only 11 turnovers.

 

"That game could've gone either way," said Roadrunners Head Coach Matt Brown. "We bent, but we didn't break. Mineral Area had a guy make a three-point shot at the buzzer. We fought back and found a way to win the game in overtime. That is an example of a good team. We did a good job from the free-throw line, our assist to turnover numbers were good. Obviously, Sam is a special player. I think we have a pretty special group, good teams find a way to win games."

 

SFCC (14-5, 1-2 in Region 16) dropped a hard-fought Region 16 and Missouri Community College Athletic Conference game 72-61 to the Three Rivers Community College Raiders in Poplar Bluff on Saturday, Jan. 18. 

 

The game featured five lead changes and eight ties throughout the defensive battle. Three Rivers led 10-6 with about 15 minutes and 47 seconds remaining in the opening half. SFCC battled back to tie the game at 14 with eight minutes and 24 seconds remaining until halftime. The Roadrunners took a two-point advantage at 16-14 with less than seven minutes and 30 seconds remaining.

 

Three Rivers got their offense going late in the half to take a 30-24 lead into halftime. SFCC trimmed the advantage to four points with less than 16 minutes to go in the game. Three Rivers went on an 8-2 run with about seven minutes and 55 seconds remaining to make the game 47-39. The Raiders took control of the contest and made the plays in the final minutes to secure the victory.

 

Bradford led the team in scoring once again with 16 points on four of 11 from the field and eight of 10 from the free-throw line and a team-high four assists. Bradford finished his stat line with four rebounds, a steal and a blocked shot. Sophomore guard Donta Davis pitched in with 14 points and a team-high three steals. Gunnels chipped in with 11 points. Hanson added 10 points and a team-high seven rebounds.

 

David Rohrbach

SFCC Athletics