Hutch too much for Broncbuster women

One of the biggest stats that can be a determining outcome of a game are turnovers. Unfortunately for Garden City, Hutchinson scored 35 points of of 28 Lady Buster turnovers, and cruised to the 85-54 victory at the Hutchinson Sports Arena Saturday night.

The No. 9 team in the country started out with a 10-2 lead, only to see Garden City chip away at the lead. Kavita Akula's second three-point shot pulled the Lady Busters to within 14-12 with under two minutes remaining in the opening quarter. That would be the closest Garden City (5-5, 3-4) would get the rest of the night.

Hutchinson led 18-14 after the first quarter, and used a 9-0 run to lead 27-14 in the first 68 seconds of the second quarter. The Busters would cut it to nine points on four occasions in the second frame, but they would not get it any closer the rest of the night, as the Lady Blue Dragons took a 41-28 halftime lead. 

In the third quarter, Hutch used a 14-2 run to separate themselves from Garden City in the middle of the period, and led 59-36 with 3:25 left in the quarter. The Lady Busters made one final push, cutting the margin to 64-49 after three quarters, on a 13-5 run. 

Whatever momentum Garden City had at the end of the third quarter had, did not convert to the final quarter. Hutchinson (8-1, 6-1) wore down the Lady Busters, outscoring them 21-5 in last 10 minutes of the game, as they cruised to their fifth straight win, and snapped Garden City's two-game win streak. 

Hutchinson had five players in double figures, led by Kirea Rogers with a game-high 19 points, while Taylor Stahly had 13 and Bride Kennedy Hopoate added 12. The Lady Blue Dragons shot 52.7% from the field (29-55), and were 21-26 from the foul line. They also outscored Garden City 32-2 in bench points, and won the rebounding margin 32-20.

The Lady Busters got 17 points from Monica Barefield, 13 from DeRae Lewis and 11 from Kavita Akula. Garden City shot 42.9% from the field (18-42), and finished 13-20 from the foul line. Hutchinson's 85 points were the most allowed by the Lady Busters this year, while scoring a season-low in points. 

Garden City will return home to host Cloud County on Wednesday night. The Lady Thunderbirds defeated Colby 90-47 in Concordia Saturday evening.