BRENHAM, Texas – Blinn College basketball couldn’t stop the Region XIV South Division conference leader Jacksonville College that came onto the court with a five-game winning streak. The Buccaneers fell by the score of 91-64 on Wednesday night in the Kruse Center.
With the loss, the Buccaneers’ overall record falls to 18-11 and conference record drops to 8-10.
Blinn’s sophomores fought hard in their final game at the Kruse Center as Markques Houston led the pack with a team-high 16 points. Redshirt freshman Antony Rice was next nine points, while sophomore Antione Lister followed with eight. Redshirt sophomore Tony Lewis and redshirt freshman Kae’ron Baker each scored seven points.
“We wanted a sophomore class to open up the Kruse Center and I am really proud of them,” said Scott Schumacher, Blinn head coach. “They are great people and are all going to go on to the next level to play basketball and get a college education.”
Houston and sophomore Curtlon Wesley accounted for all of Blinn’s points and combined for 11 during the first five minutes of play. Jacksonville and Blinn played a close first half until the Jaguars pulled away 40-30. A 6-2 run led by Lister with four points including a slam dunk allowed Blinn to conclude the first half behind Jacksonville, 42-36.
In the second half, Blinn’s Tony Lewis and Rice scored the first four points for the Buccaneers to only trail by two. However, Jacksonville took off on a 16-2 run in order to build an early 58-42 lead in the final half. The Buccaneers fought hard to dig themselves out of the hole as Baker and Houston each scored seven points and John Brown scored four in the half.
The Buccaneers will play in their final regular season game of the year against Lee College on Saturday, March 3 at 4 p.m. on the road.
Blinn has competed in intercollegiate athletics since 1903 and captured 36 NJCAA national championships since 1987. For more information, visit www.buccaneersports.com.