March 29, 2024

SWCC falls at No. 17 Kirkwood

CEDAR RAPIDS – The No. 17 Kirkwood Eagles got their revenge on Southwestern Community College and came away with a 79-63 victory.

The Spartans fall to 6-10 overall and 1-4 in ICCAC play.

The game opened slow, with the Eagles going on a 6-0 run in the games first four minutes of action.

“We started off the game really sluggish,” Southwestern Community College head coach Reggie Kindle said. “I don’t think we were locked in. It was a really good environment, maybe the best environment we’ve played in all year, they do a good job of getting people in the stands.”

Jhonta Gonnigan led the Spartans with eight points in nine minutes played during the first half.

“We settled in and battled back, we were down six (30-24) at half,” Kindle said. “Second half we battled, Kirkwood’s size hurt us a little bit and they had a player go 6-of-9 from three which hurt us a little bit.”

Khayden Hooks connected on a 3-point basket with 13:52 left in the game which narrowed Kirkwood’s margin to eight, 48-40, the closest the score would be for the remainder of the game.

Kirkwood went on a 9-0 run over the next two minutes and continued their momentum for the remainder of the game.

Carson Busch led SWCC with 12 points, 10 of his total coming in the second half, and Devin Tomlinson contributed 10 to the SWCC total.

“Carson, in the first half, didn’t play like the Carson I know,” Kindle said. “Dev did some good things, he’s always able to stretch the floor with his ability to shoot it. Jhonta gave us a spark, Jamel Hollins was sick all week stepped up and gave us big minutes, just proud of guys stepping up when their number was called.”

The Spartans connected on 12 3-point baskets during the game.

“I think that’s a strength of our team,” Kindle said. “We kind of hang our hats on the 3-ball, that’s why we run this 5-out offense.”

Southwestern’s Isaiah Peasley finalized the scoring total with a 3-point basket with three seconds remaining in the game.

“They W’s aren’t showing for us but we’re battling in every game.” Kindle said. “The score shows we’re there in every game, I think we can be a scary team come conference tournament time. We still got a player out that could be good for us, I’m excited to get him back soon here hopefully.”

KIRKWOOD 79, SWCC 63

KIRKWOOD (79) — Totals (FG FT PTS) — 29 11-15 79. Dre Anderson 7 0-0 20, Blake Brinkmeyer 6 0-0 13. DaChaun Anderson 6 0-0 12, Dante Eldridge 2 4-4 8, Jaleque Dunson 2 1-1 7, Cassius Brooks 2 2-2 6, Arthur Cox 2 0-0 4, Tolu Telli 1 1-2 3, Justin Recker 1 0-2 3, Caleb Delzell 0 3-4 3. 3-point goals (10) — Anderson 6, Dunson 2, Recker 1, Brinkmeyer 1. Rebounds (41) — Anderson 12, Delzell 9, Brinkmeyer 8, Brooks 4, Anderson 2, Cox 2, Telli 2, Dunson 1, Eldridge 1. Assists (19) — Delzell 6, Anderson 3, Eldridge 2, Dunson 2, Telli 2, Brooks 1, Recker 1. Steals (7) — Anderson 3, Telli 2, Cox 1, Eldridge 1. Blocks (6) — Brinkmeyer 3, Telli 1, Anderson 1, Delzell 1. Turnovers — 13.

SWCC (63) — Totals (FG FT PTS) — 23 5-6 63. Carson Busch 5 2-2 14, Devin Tomlinson 4 0-0 10, Khayden Hooks 3 0-0 9, AJ Lacabe 3 2-2 9, Jhonta Gonnigan 3 1-2 8, Jamel Hollins 3 0-0 8, Isaiah Peasley 1 0-0 3. 3-point goals (12) — Hooks 3, Hollins 2, Tomlinson 2, Busch 2, Lacabe 1, Gonnigan 1. Rebounds (20) — Tomlinson 6, Baker 5, Busch 4, Hollins 2, Wells 1, Hooks 1, Lacabe 1. Assists (11) — Gonnigan 3, Busch 2, Lacabe 1, Hoks 1, Baker 1, Tomlinson 1, Carey 1, Hollins 1. Steals (9) — Hooks 3, Busch 2, Hollins 2, Carey 1, Baker 1. Blocks (1) — Hollins 1. Turnovers — 10.