The Blinn College men’s basketball team endured a tough start to the new year as the Buccaneers dropped an 87-72 home decision to Region 14 foe Panola College on Saturday at the Kruse Center in Brenham, Texas.
Blinn is now 7-6 overall and 1-4 in region play.
“I thought we played a really good first half, and overall, we competed and played very hard,” Bucs head coach said. “In the second half, we had some costly turnovers and took some tough shots that didn’t fall, and that led to some easy buckets for Panola which allowed them to pull away.”
The two teams battled through a competitive first half that saw the Ponies race out to an early 12-4 lead before Blinn battled back to force three ties.
With the game deadlocked at 24-all, Panola used a 14-5 run to build a 38-29 advantage in the closing minutes of the half before the Bucs cut into their deficit with four straight points.
A pair of free throws from both freshman guard Connor Sprattley and freshman guard/forward Ian Sedah made it a 38-33 Ponies lead at the intermission.
After the break, the Bucs were unable to continue their offensive momentum as Panola hit its stride. The Ponies opened the second half with an 18-2 run to pull away for good.
Sprattley paced Blinn with 18 points.
Sophomore guard Dashawn Ceaser had 14 points and six rebounds, Sedah had 13 points, and freshman guard Desmeon Jones chipped in 12 to go with seven assists.
The Bucs continue their region slate with a road trip to Navarro College at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 7, in Corsicana, Texas.
Blinn has competed in intercollegiate athletics since 1903 and captured 53 national championships since 1987.
