The Buccaneers dropped to 27-2 overall and 14-1 in region play
“It was just one of those nights,” Blinn head coach Jeff Jenkins said. “We did not defend well, we did not compete well in the first half, and when we don’t make shots like we didn’t tonight, it makes it doubly bad. I thought in the second half we competed more, but Trinity Valley came out and played better than us tonight.”
Blinn had a tough time offensively through the first 20 minutes of play, never quite finding its footing as the Cardinals led 23-16 after the first quarter and 48-27 by halftime.
(Pictured: Blinn College sophomore guard Jakoriah Long puts up a layup during a game against Trinity Valley Community College on March 1)
A jumper from sophomore guard Jakoriah Long and a free throw from sophomore guard Allana Thompson pulled the Bucs within 63-49 at the end of the third period.
Sophomore forward Tiffany Tullis sank a layup and sophomore guard Hannah Humphrey drilled a 3-pointer early in the fourth to make it a 65-54 ballgame, but Trinity Valley scored the next seven points to keep its distance.
“Hopefully we will get to play Trinity Valley again, and hopefully we will defend them better than we did tonight,” Jenkins added. “We’ll watch the film and clean up our defensive mistakes. We’ll take this loss and learn from it tomorrow.”
Leading the Bucs offensively was sophomore guard Skylar Barnes, who finished with 19 points. Long and Tullis finished with 12 and 11 points, respectively.
Prior to the start of the game, Blinn celebrated Sophomore Day and recognized seven sophomores who will move on following the conclusion of the season. Those sophomores included Long, Thompson, Tullis, Humphrey, Barnes, Makayla Patterson, and Crystal Smith.
Blinn concludes the regular season with a region road trip to Tyler Junior College at 2 p.m. on Saturday, March 4, in Tyler, Texas.
Blinn has competed in intercollegiate athletics since 1903 and captured 42 NJCAA national championships since 1987.
