By MACK McCLURE
mmcclure@gbtribune.com
 
Is there a Kyra Sedgwick in the house?
If Barton Community College wants to make any headway during the stretch run of the season, the Cougars need to find a closer.
Barton, you see, still hasn’t found a way to close out games when it gets down to the end of regulation or into an extra five-minute session all season. Such was the case again on Wednesday night at Kirkman Activity Center against Hutchinson, where the Cougars found themselves locked in their fifth overtime game of the season.
And, for the fifth straight time in OT, the Cougars came out on the short end of the stick, falling 77-72. After the score was tied at 61 at the end of regulation, Hutchinson outscored Barton 16-11 in the overtime period.
Hutch improves to 21-6 overall and 7-6 in Kansas Jayhawk Community College Conference Western Division play. The Blue Dragons were led by 6-foot-9, 230-pound sophomore Robert Goff, a University of Oklahoma signee. He finished with team highs of 18 points and nine rebounds, and made 8 of 11 field goals. He was one of four Hutch players in double figures.
Barton was led by Colin Beatty with a game-high 20 points and Storm Sanders and Adam Young added 19 apiece, as it drops to 18-10, 6-8.
BCC’s leading scorer, power forward Dwayne Brunson, was held to a season-low three points, missing all seven of his shots from the floor. He was 3 for 4 at the foul line.
The Blue Dragons led 52-45 with 7:58 left in the second half before the Cougars went on an 11-0 run to go ahead 56-52 at the 3:14 mark.
Sanders later hit a driving layup and Beatty sank 1 of 2 foul shots as BCC held a 59-56 lead.
But Hutch southpaw Dylan Frantz’s 3-point hit from the right wing tied the game at 59 with 1:08 left in regulation. Each team scored two more points to send the game into overtime.
Sanders converted a pair of free throws for a 63-61 lead in OT before Goff, who scored five points in OT, started making an impact. He sandwiched a pair of power moves for baskets around one free throw for a 68-65 lead at the 1:52 mark in OT.
Barton never led again.
At the outset of the game and Brunson plagued with two early fouls, BCC matched Hutch basket for basket in the first half. The Dragons led 34-32 at halftime after the Cougars went on a 10-5 run during the final 4:13 of the first half.
Sanders scored eight of those points, hitting a pair of 3-pointers and two free throws. He finished with 13 first-half points, hitting 4 of 8 field goals and 3 of 6 3s during the opening 20 minutes.
Early on, Beatty’s 18-footer from the right wing tied the game at 9 with 13:30 remaining in the first half.
After Bruce Reed’s 3-pointer from the right wing gave Hutch a 12-9 edge, Adam Young and Sanders hit back-to-back 3s for a 15-12 BCC lead at the 12:29 mark.
After Goff’s perimeter jumper made it 15-14, Beatty nailed a 3 from the right wing and then scored on a spin move at the rim on the Cougars’ next possession for a 20-15 lead with 9:18 left in the half.
Stuart Sullivan’s 3-pointer started an 11-2 surge by Hutch, capped by Mark Braden’s free throws at the 4:29 mark for a 29-22 advantage.
That’s when Sanders started the Cougars’ half-ending run to draw close, kick-started by his 3-ball at the 4:13 mark.

GAME NOTES — Entering Wednesday night’s game, Barton probably needs to win its final three games to assure a home playoff game. … The Cougars might be able to go 2-1 and get a home berth by virtue of winning a tiebreaker. … Barton snapped a three-game losing streak last Thursday by beating Garden City 70-66, but lost at Butler 82-58 on Saturday night. … Hutchinson knows Barton’s plight, taking a four-game losing streak into Wednesday’s game, the Blue Dragons’ latest loss was an 82-73 setback at the hands of Butler. … Hutch had only won twice in the last 14 meetings in Great Bend.