After trailing 20 minutes into Friday game at the Booster Club/Best Western Classic before rallying for a win, the Barton men’s basketball team was in high gear from the tip Saturday.
Barton bolted out to an 11-2 lead against Redlands (Okla) Saturday on the way to a 97-75 win. Friday, Barton used a big second half to defeat Highlands, 81-76 at the Barton Gym.
The win kept the Cougars unbeaten on the season, now at 3-0. Redlands lost for the first time and stand at 2-1.
“We picked up two wins,” Coach Craig Fletchall said. “That is the main thing. We played well at times. We didn’t play well at times. But overall, we had a pretty good weekend.”
Barton scored a quick layup on the opening tip and kept it going early on. The Cougars made their first four shots from the floor on the way to that 11-2 lead, capped by a dunk from Marvin Cannon.
Barton kept the pressure on. By the midway point of the half, the Cougars had built that lead to 15 at 24-9 on a Sam Lorenzen 3-pointer.
Redlands managed to cut into the Barton lead before halftime, trimming it to 29-21 late in the half and eventually getting it as low as five. Barton went to half leading 40-30.
Turnovers were an issue for Barton in the first half, committing 16 during the first 20 minutes of play. That turned into 13 points off turnovers for Redlands.
A quick 5-0 run by Barton to start the second half put the Cougars back up by 15. But following a technical foul on Cannon and two more free throws on the same possession, Redlands had cut the lead to 50-46 – the closest it had been since the opening minutes.
Elijah Ford ended the run but only momentarily. Redlands trimmed the lead to a pair at 52-50 before a 3-pointer by Kawansie Wilkins pushed it back to five and started a 15-2 run to gave Barton a double figure lead again at 67-52 with 12 minutes to play.
It didn’t stop there, a layup by Wilkins gave Barton it biggest lead of the game at 69-52 before a Redlands free throw ended the 17-2 run.
That was all she wrote for Redlands. Barton’s lead grew to 20 at 73-53. The closest Redlands would get after that would be 16.
Cannon had a big game for the Cougars, leading the way with 25.
“He’s a pretty good player,” Coach Fletchall said. “He’s long and athletic. He was knocking down the shots tonight and that makes a lot of players look really, really good.”
He was one of six Barton players to reach double figures. Wilkins added 15, Akeem White 13, Kian Dalyrimple had 12 while Lorenzen and Ford each had 11.
Cannon also led Barton with eight rebounds and Keshon Montague finished with six assists. The Cougars dominated the boards, winning the rebound war by a 54-30 advantage. Rebounding is a big concern for the Cougars with no player taller than 6-6.
Friday, Barton had to rally from a halftime deficit to knock of D-II No. 16 ranked Highland. The Scotties led 42-39 at intermission but Barton came back the final 20 minutes for the win.
Highland briefly led by nine at one point in the opening half but most of the first 20 minutes was a close back-and-forth affair.
During the second half, Barton played with the lead most of the way. The Cougars overtook the Scotties on a Cannon 3-pointer with 17:32 to play in the game, taking a 47-44 lead.
Barton would not trail again. But the Scotties stayed close, tying the game at 66-all with 6:13 to play.
Lorenzen would give Barton a 71-66 lead, capping a 5-0 run on a trey with 5:18 left. Highland would get no closer than three the rest of the way.
Cannon, who finished with a team-high 17 points, put the game away with two free throws with 10 seconds to play for the 81-76 final. Wilkins added 14 and Noah Webster came off the bench to score 13.
Montague handed out nine assists and Ford grabbed seven rebounds. Holden Redparth led all scorers with 26 for Highlands.
Barton has one more game at home before diving into the Jayhawk Conference play. The Sterling JV will visit the Barton Gym Wednesday for a 7:30 pm tip. The Jayhawk slate starts Saturday with a home game against Colby.

Barton 97, Redlands 75
Redlands 30 45 – 75
Barton 40 57 – 97
Redlands (2-1) 75
McNeil 5-17 3-5 14, Thomas 2-11 6-8 14, Arthur 1-5 4-5 6, Saunders 4-9 0-0 11, Steinmetz 4-9 2-2 14, Meraz 0-5 0-0 0, Carson 1-3 0-0 2, Hoyle 3-6 0-0 6, Johnson 2-4 1-2 5, Cortesio 2-3 2-3 6. Totals – 24-72 18-25 75.
Barton (3-0) 97
Wilkins 5-7 4-4 15, Lorenzen 4-9 0-0 11, Ford 5-9 1-3 11, Cannon 9-12 4-4 25, Montague 1-2 0-0 3, Andrews 2-2 1-2 5, Seydi 0-1 0-0 0, Heist 0-0 0-0 0, White 5-11 3-4 13, Webster 1-5 0-0 2, Dalyrimple 4-10 2-2 12. Totals – 36-68 15-19 75.
3-pointers – Redlands 9-29 (Steinmetz 4-8, Saunders 3-7, Thomas 1-3, McNeil 1-8, Arthur 0-1, Meraz 0-1, Cortesio 0-1); Barton 10-22 (Cannon 3-3, Lorenzen 3-6, Dalyrimple 2-5, Montague 1-1, Wilkins 1-3, Seydi 0-1, White 0-1, Webster 0-2).
Rebounds – Redlands 30 (Hoyle 7); Barton 54 (Cannon 8). Assists – Redlands 11 (McNeil 4); Barton 20 (Montague 6). Steals – Redlands 9 (Thomas 3); Barton 7 (Ford 2). Blocks – Redlands 5 (Thomas 2) Barton 4 (Wilkins, Dalyrimple 2)
Turnovers – Redlands 12, Barton 21. Fouled Out – Arthur, Redlands. Technicals – Cannon, Barton.

Barton 81, Highland 76
Highland 42 34 – 76
Barton 39 42 – 81
Highland (0-1) 76
Mason 2-7 0-0 5, Redparth 6-12 9-9 26, Haskins 4-10 0-0 10, Williams 6-9 3-4 15, Harvey 2-2 0-0 4, Perry 2-4 0-0 5, Rutherford 2-5 1-1 5, Johnson 1-2 0-1 2, Owen 0-0 0-0 0, Doakes 0-0 0-0 0, Caldwell 2-2 0-0 4. Totals – 27-53 13-15 76.
Barton (2-0) 81
Wilkins 4-10 4-6 14, Lorenzen 3-7 0-1 8, Ford 3-5 0-2 7, Cannon 5-6 6-6 17, Montague 3-9 0-0 7, Andrews 1-2 0-0 2, Harris 0-0 0-0 0, White 2-5 0-0 4, Webster 4-9 2-4 13, Dalyrimple 3-5 0-0 9. Totals – 28-58 12-19 81.
3-pointers – Highland 9-21 (Redparth 5-9, Haskins 2-7, Perry 1-1, Mason 1-3, Williams 0-1); Barton 13-27 (Dalyrimple 3-4, Webster 3-6, Wilkins 2-5, Lorenzen 2-5, Ford 1-1, Cannon 1-1, Montague 1-3, Andrews 0-1, White 0-1).
Rebounds – Highland 29 (Redparth 9); Barton 32 (Ford 7). Assists – Highland 12 (Haskins 6); Barton 19 (Montague 9). Steals – Highland 5 (Mason, Redparth 2); Barton 4 (Wilkins 2). Blocks – Highland 0, Barton 2 (Ford, White)
Turnovers – Highland 11, Barton 9. Fouled Out – None. Technicals – None.