cBY JIM MISUNAS
jmisunas@gbtribune.com
JUNCTION CITY — Great Bend celebrated a road basketball sweep for the first time in two years by outlasting the Junction City Bluejays 48-39 in the boys game and 49-38 in the girls game.
GREAT BEND BOYS 48, JUNCTION CITY 39 — The Panthers (2-2) wheeled into a 15-point lead before Junction City's rally brought the lead to 34-33 in the fourth quarter. Great Bend (2-2) plays at Salina Central Friday.
But the Panthers responded with back-to-back 3-pointers by Peyton Duvall and clutch plays from standout point guard Alex Schremmer and solid free throw shooting by Ray Kuhlman down the stretch. Duvall's first 3-pointer led to a 38-33 lead. His second 3-pointer gave the Panthers a 43-35 lead. Kuhlman delivered six clutch free throws in the fourth quarter.
Schremmer delivered his typical vintage game with 16 points and several assists. Duvall scored 10 points and Kuhlman added nine points. The Panthers outscored the Bluejays 15-6 from 3-point range. Junction City made 2 of 29 3-pointers against terrific perimeter defense.
"It says a lot about our team getting on a bus after a two-our ride," said Great Bend coach Tim Brooks. "Our guys showed resiliency and a ton of fight. We hit some big shots down the stretch."
The Panthers were outscored 7-0 when Schremmer departed for a few minutes with four fouls. But the Panthers closed out with a 14-6 scoring run.
"We did the best we could. We rebounded the basketball. For us, 12 offensive rebounds is incredible. Ray Kuhlman is a fine basketball player. Peyton Duvall hit huge shots. We've done a tone of shooting. It's good to see that pay off. We buckled down defensively and created extra opportunities with offensive rebounds. Junction City will win a lot of basketball games. It's a good win."
GREAT BEND GIRLS 49, JUNCTION CITY 38 — The Panther girls converted six 3-pointers to outscore the Bluejays 18-0 from long range for a non-league basketball victory. Sydney Unruh sparked the victory with a career high 22 points and nine free throws.
Jenna Mauler hit back-to-back treys and Alyssa Herter followed with a 3-pointer for a 30-23 lead. The Bluejays sliced the lead to 37-35 after scores by Savannah Adams, Andrea Davis and Madison Escobar.
But the Panthers rallied with a game-ending 11-2 scoring run in the decisive final minutes. Sydney Unruh scored 10 fourth-quarter points and Mauler converted four free throws in the fourth quarter.
"Junction City is a tough place to play. There's energy and it's loud. Junction City is a really scrappy team. We put together a few runs to pull it out. We had young ladies who stepped up in tense situations. Sydney Unruh started out the game on fire. Junction City forces you into errors and speeds you up. We finally dictated what was happening."
Great Bend 8 12 11 17 — 48
Junction City 4 6 13 16 — 39
GREAT BEND (2-2)—Schremmer 3 9-9 16; Duvall 4 0-0 10; Kuhlman 1 6-8 9; Brown 1 0-0 2; Miller 4 0-0 8; Olivas 1 0-0 3; Totals 14-42 15-17 48.
JUNCTION CITY (1-1)—Dixon 4 2-2 10; Fadiga 1 0-0 2; Johnson 3 0-0 7; Ruffin 1 0-0 2; Jumphreys 3 2-3 8; Tedder 4 1-1 10; Totals 16-49 5-6 39.
3-pointers—GB 5 (Duvall 2, Schremmer 1, Olivas 1, Kuhlman 1); JC 2 (Johnson 1, Tedder 1).
Great Bend 13 6 13 17 — 49
Junction City 6 13 10 9 — 38
GREAT BEND (2-2)—Unruh 6 9-12 22; Mauler 2 6-12 12; Herter 2 0-0 6; Smith 1 2-6 4; Schroeder 1 0-0 3; Clark 1 0-2 2; Latham 0 0-2 0; Totals 13 17-34 49.
JUNCTION CITY (0-2)—Mellana Davis 5 1-2 11; Andrea Davis 2 5-8 7; Adams 3 0-4 6, Rivera 1 4-6 6; Robinson 1 1-2 3; Nicholson 0 1-2 1; Harris 0 0-2 0; Totals 13 12-24 38.
3-pointers—GB 6 (Mauler 2, Herter 3, Unruh 1, Schroeder 1).
