Roadrunners fall at nationally ranked Coffeyville

Coffeyville, Kan.-The State Fair Community College (SFCC) Roadrunners men's basketball team opened the second half of the season with a tough 84-73 loss to 18^th-ranked Coffeyville Community College on Saturday, Jan. 3.

SFCC (9-9) led the game 10-7 with less than 16 minutes remaining in the first half.

Coffeyville used the three-point shot to take a 22-20 lead with about 11 minutes remaining in the opening half. Coffeyville pushed their advantage to 44-34 at halftime and took a 26-point advantage in the second half. The lead was largest by either team.

SFCC put together a 9-0 run in the second half to cut the deficit to 68-51 to battle their way back into the game with less than seven minutes remaining in regulation. The Roadrunners continued to fight, but Coffeyville made the plays to hold on to their advantage.

"I thought our guys played hard and showed resilience today," said Roadrunners head coach Jeremy Jackson. "Being down in numbers did not affect our fight and our mentality. We grew today and will continue to build our foundation here."

SFCC had four players who scored in double figures. Freshman guard Chanler Joseph of West Palm Beach, Fla. scored 17 points. Joseph recorded a team-high seven steals and dished out a team-high five assists. Sophomore forward Daniel Garza of Hammond, Ind. and sophomore guard Gavin Q Murphy of Calabasas, Calif. contributed 12 points each. Freshman guard Damian Dirden of Denver, Colo. pitched in with 10 points. Garza led the team in blocked shots with two. Freshman wing JP Ndong of Germany/ Senegal pulled down a team-high six rebounds.

SFCC will return to action on Wednesday, Jan. 7 for a game at Mineral Area College. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. The game will be the Region 16 opener for SFCC.

David Rohrbach

SFCC Athletics