BY JIM MISUNAS
jmisunas@gbtribune.com
HUTCHINSON — Defending NJCAA men's basketball champion Barton Community College passed its first test with flying colors.
The No. 14 ranked Cougars parlayed double/doubles by Keandre Kindell and Brent Moss into an emphatic 92-62 rout over Brunswick. N.C. Sunday at the Sports Arena. The Cougars (26-8) play No. 8 seed Daytona State, Fla. (27-5) at noon Tuesday.
Wichita State signee Kindell sparked a fast start with 23 points and 12 assists for his second double/double of the season. Moss was scoreless for 10 minutes, but rallied with a solid 14-point, 10-rebound, 5 assist outing. They both were key players off the bench for last year's NJCAA champion.
The free-wheeling game was perfect for Kindell's fast-paced style. He pushed the ball upcourt for quick scores and teammates finished with scores 12 times after Kindell passes.
"My stats don't matter as long as we get the win," Kindell said. "Me, playing fast that's the way I like to play. When we're running in transition, it's a score. I'm definitely happy when we finish with a score."
The Cougars controlled every statistic from field goal shooting, rebounding and assists. The Cougars gained a 48-30 edge in the paint, 16-6 off transition and 17-11 off turnovers.
Also scoring in double figures were Eltramon Smith, Jr. (13), Aris Rodriguez (11), Fontaine Williams (11) and Sebastian Muchitsch (10). All five Cougars were at least plus 19 points when playing. Williams and Pavel Inanov were plus 11 and 10.
Alius Bowser scored 13 points and Armani Henderson added 10 points for Brunswick (28-5).
The Cougars have swept 14 consecutive games at the Sports Arena
"We're very comfortable playing here," Kindell said. "It's almost like it's home-court. It's very familiar when we come here. We play two games at the start of the year and also play our league game at Hutch."
Moss said being comfortable with the surroundings gives the Cougars an edge.
"It allows us to play free. We go out and 'hoop' like it's practice because we've been here so many times," Moss said. "We come out here and play basketball. I slowed down a little bit and played my game."
Barton outscored the Dolphins 33-18 on 3-pointers with 11 of 23 shooting. The Cougars' exceptional perimeter defense held the Dolphins to 6 of 25 shooting (24%) for a team that averaged 10 3-pointers per game.
"We played good defense, but you can always play better," Kindell said.
The Cougars didn't mind playing an extra game to face Daytona State Tuesday.
"It's good. We get our feet wet especially with so many freshmen," Moss said. "We get the feel of the game that way."
Muchitsch drilled a pair of early 3-pointers and Kindell delivered 10 consecutive Cougar points, highlighted by a dazzling up-and-under layup for a 19-8 lead. A Moss driving shot sparked the Cougars to a 39-23 lead that ended with a 45-29 halftime lead.
The Dolphins sliced the lead to 46-37, but the Cougars broke out the dunk party off transition in the next few minutes. Kindell fed Moss with a lob pass. Aris Rodriguez dunked off transition and followed with an acrobatic layup.
The Cougar reserves shined with 26 points. Pavel Inanov threw down a dunk. Maddox Spray converted a step-back jumper. Lyna Brooks, Jr., Majok Chuol and Lucas N'Gombo also scored
BRUNSWICK (28-5) (FG 3 FT TP)—Bowser 5-8 (3-6) 0-0 13, Henderson 5-8 (0-1) 0-2 10, Oates 3-9 (2-6) 0-0 8, Barbee 4-8 (0-1) 0-0 8, King 3-12 (1-6) 0-0 7, Latham 1-5 0-0 2, Hayes (0-1) 0-0 0, Gardner 3-5 2-4 8, Bartney 0-2 (0-1) 0-0 0, Cooke 0-3 (0-2) 0-0 0, Totals 26-68 (6-25) 4-9 62
BARTON (25-8) (FG 3 FT TP)—Kindell 8-14 (1-3) 1-4 23, Moss 7-12 0-0 14, Rodriguez 4-8 (2-4) 1-2 11, Smith 6-8 (1-2) 0-0 13, Muchitsch 2-6 (2-4) 2-2 10, Williams 4-11 (3-6) 0-0 11, Parlow 0-1 0-2 0, N'Gombo 1-2 0-0 2, Inanov 1-1 1-2 3, Brooks (2-4) 0-0 6, Chuoi 0-1 2-2 2, Spray 1-1 0-0 2, Totals 37-69 (11-23) 7-14 92
Rebounds—B 37 (Green 9); BC 44 (Moss 10). Assists—B 12 (Oates 5); BC 25 (Kindell 12). Steals—B 6 (Hednerson 4); BC 14 (Kindell 4)
2025 NJCAA TOURNAMENT
FIRST ROUND
Connors State, Okla. 80, John A. Logan, Ill. 75
Barton 92, Brunswick, N.C. 62
Monroe, N.Y. 79, Chipola, Fla. 78 (OT)
Triton, Ill. 58, Columbia State 55
Trinidad, Colo. 83, Pensacola, Fla. 75
Vincennes, Ind. 69 Three Rivers, Mo. 51
Angelina, Texas 87, South Georgia State 70
Frank Phillips, Texas 83, Wallace State 69
SECOND ROUND
Connors State, Okla. 63, Snow, Utah 62
Cowley College 63, Triton, Ill. 62
South Plains, Texas 91, Monroe, N.Y. 71
Vincennes, Ind. 85, Indian Hills, Iowa 71
TUESDAY, 12—No. 8 Daytona, Fla. (27-5) vs. No. 9 Barton Cougars (26-8)
TUESDAY, 2:30—No. 7 Trinity Valley, Texas (30-3) vs. No. 23 Trinidad, Colo. (19-14)
TUESDAY, 5:30—No. 5 Jones, Miss. (30-3) vs. No. 12 Angelina, Texas (27-6)
TUESDAY, 8—No. 6 Panola, Miss. (27-6) vs. No. 11 Frank Phillips, Texas (25-8)
QUARTERFINALS
WEDNESDAY, 12—No. 17 Connors State, Okla. (30-3) vs. Daytona, Fla. (28-5)/Barton (27-8) winner
WEDNESDAY, 2:30—No. 2 Cowley (30-4) vs. Trinity Valley (31-3)/Trinidad, Colo. (20-14) winner
WEDNESDAY, 5:30—No. 4 South Plains, Texas (28-6) vs. Jones, Miss. (31-3)/Angelina, Texas (28-6) winner
WEDNESDAY, 8—No. 14 Vincennes, Ind. (28-4) vs. Panola, Miss./Frank Phillips, Texas winner
