BUC WOMEN ROLL TO WIN; MEN FALL IN KRUSE CENTER DOUBLEHEADER

No. 24 Blinn women’s basketball rolls past Jacksonville, 96-55 

Four Buccaneers score double-digit points in victory 

BRENHAM, Texas — The No. 24 Blinn College women’s basketball team rolled past Jacksonville College, 96-55, after four Buccaneers scored double-digit points in the Kruse Center Wednesday night.

With the win, the Buccaneers improved their overall record to 13-5 and conference record to 9-3.

“We told them to enjoy their last few home games and the crowd was as good as it could be,” head coach Jeff Jenkins said. “We made some shots, had fun, and played hard. We practice so hard that it is good for them to get a chance to have fun at home in front of their friends and family, so I am proud of them.”

Keaundra Eddings scored a team-high 19 points, Hailey Atwood followed with 16 points, Rebekah Malik tallied 12 points, and Deja Adrian came up with 11. In addition, Jessica Soders and Briauna Johnson each chipped in seven points, while Alex Bowman and Chynell Mitchell each had six.

“It feels good to get this win because we work so hard every day and play every game like it’s our last game,” Johnson said. “Our defense is really strong, and if we didn’t play defense we probably wouldn’t win a game. We played hard and had fun tonight.”

The Buccaneers wasted no time jumping out to an 11-5 lead after Malik and Atwood combined for seven points to lead the way. Jacksonville came within three points of Blinn, but Eddings and Atwood scored the last four points of the quarter to take a 21-14 lead for good.

Eddings, who scored 10 points in the second quarter, and Soders hit shots from downtown to lead Blinn on a 12-0 run to separate from Jacksonville, 42-18. Eddings kept things rolling by scoring five straight points for the Buccaneers to stay on top, 47-20. Malik and Kameryn Lewis each hit 3-pointers toward the end of the quarter for Blinn to lead 53-27 at the half.

In the third quarter, Jacksonville gained some momentum to go on an 11-0 run. However, Johnson put an end to it with a 3-pointer and led Blinn on a 10-2 run with eight points for the Buccaneers to lead, 73-40. Malik made a shot from downtown for Blinn to conclude the third quarter with a 76-43 lead.

Blinn opened the fourth quarter on a 10-2 run to take an 86-45 lead at the 6:13 mark. Malik and Jaslyn Williams each came up with 3-pointers to lead the Buccaneers on a 8-0 run to stay ahead, 94-48. Bowman scored Blinn’s final two points of the game for the Buccaneers to defeat Jacksonville by a 41-point margin.

Next, the Buccaneers will travel to take on Bossier Parish Community College on Friday, March 26, at 4 p.m.

Blinn men’s basketball falls to No. 12 Trinity Valley, 86-79 

Davion Coleman scores a game-high 28 points  

BRENHAM, Texas — The Blinn College men’s basketball team fell to No. 12 Trinity Valley Community College, 86-79, after a hard-fought battle on Wednesday night in the Kruse Center.

With the loss, the Buccaneers are now 10-7 overall and 8-7 in Region XIV play.

“Trinity Valley has a very good basketball team and they are leading our league for a reason,” head coach Scott Schumacher said. “I thought our guys played right there with them and just needed to do a better job of taking care of the basketball. I was very proud of how our guys competed and played hard.”

Davion Coleman scored a game-high 28 points, while Calvin Carpenter scored a season-high 20. In addition, Tyler Washington scored 11 points, while Bonke Maring scored 10.

Maring took off with the first six points for the Buccaneers to take a 6-2 lead. Coleman hit a 3-pointer to start a 7-0 run for Blinn to extend its lead  to 15-5 with 13:42 on the clock. The Buccaneers strung together another seven straight points as Carpenter hit a 3-pointer and Austin Galuppo made a slam dunk for Blinn to lead 22-7 with 11:36 left until the break.

Coleman’s 3-pointer and Washington’s slam dunk kept Blinn on top 32-23. Trinity Valley scored eight straight points to grab a 33-32 lead with 4:03 on the clock. Three shots from downtown allowed the Cardinals to extend their lead to 42-34. Blinn ended the first half on a 5-2 run, but Trinity Valley continued to hold a 48-39 advantage.

Coleman scored four points and Carpenter hit a 3-pointer to lead Blinn on a 9-5 run to open the second half. Carpenter, Coleman, and Washington scored the next nine points with shots from downtown for the Buccaneers to trail 60-57. Coleman made a layup and free throw to even the score 60-60 with 15:02 left to go. Carpenter made two free throws for Blinn to take back a 62-60 lead for the final time. Trinity Valley fought back for a 67-62 lead, but Maring came up with a slam dunk to keep Blinn one-point away from tying the game. The Buccaneers continued to trail 80-76 with 3:08 remaining, but Trinity Valley scored four straight points to separate 84-76 with 16.1 seconds to go. Carpenter scored the final two points of the game before Blinn fell by just seven points.

Next, the Buccaneers will travel to compete against Navarro College on Saturday, March 27, at 6 p.m.

For more information, visit www.buccaneersports.com.

(COURTESY: Tara Dreyer, Blinn Information)