With the highest place that Barton Community College’s women’s basketball team can hope for being sixth in the Kansas Jayhawk Community College Conference Western Division race, the Lady Cougars have resigned themselves to playing a road playoff game.
That doesn’t mean they’ll just roll over in the upcoming NJCAA Region VI tournament.
“We know that there’s still a lot to play for,” Barton head coach Carter Kruger said. “We’re not dwelling on the past. With a couple of wins down the stretch, we can set ourselves up for a couple of good games and hopefully make it to Wichita.”
The region championship games will be played at Hartman Arena in Park City on March 8-9.
Knowing a road schedule is ahead of them gives the Lady Cougars a chance to prepare themselves.
“We’re just trying to get them to understand what it takes to play a road game,” Kruger said. “With the stakes being higher, you’ve got to play better just to get a win, especially on the road.”
First, Barton, which is 12-14 overall, 2-11 in the West, has to face Colby on the road tonight at 6, weather permitting.
“If the game has to be postponed, we’ll play it on Monday,” Kruger said.
Colby (6-22, 0-14) is the only team below Barton on the Western Division standings.
The Lady Trojans average a measly 48.1 points per game, while allowing 66.4.
The Lady Cougars average 64 points per game and allow 60.5.