HIGHLAND, Kan. - Behind double-doubles from
Colton Knoll (19 pts, 13 reb) and
Tavian Tate (22 pts, 10 reb), Highland (7-2) moved emphatically back into the win column, holding off a late charge by NJCAA Div. 1 Southeast (3-5) on Tuesday night.
It took Highland a moment to get rolling in the first half, as Bobcat big man Arthur DeSilva Lima Videira followed a game-opening dunk with a block of Knoll's layup , one of five misses for the Scotties to start the game.
A pair of
Adriel Smith free throws with 17:10 on the clock settled the Scotties, with Smith finding
Miguel Villegas open for a three-pointer on the next HCC possession to cut Southeast's lead to 8-5.
The first half was a tug-of-war until the final media timeout, with neither team able to extend beyond a four-point lead. After the stoppage, a steal by
Xavier Ikemefuna led to a fast-break triple by Villegas, sparking Highland to a 39-29 halftime lead.
Highland extended as far as a 45-31 lead coming out of intermission, but Southeast was able to slowly carve into that lead, tying the game at 47-47 with 11:27 on the clock. The Scotties stretched back to a six-point lead, but back-to-back triples by the Bobcats tied the game at 60-60 heading to the under-eight media timeout and a Marquis Toliver layup briefly gave SCC a lead with 7:03 to play in the contest.
DJ Thomas bookended a big defensive rebound with a layup and a three-pointer, putting Highland up for good. The Scotties survived a brief scare in the final minute, as Carson Forsey drew contact on a three-point make but missed the free throw to complete the four-point play.
A quick foul by Toliver on the rebound sent Smith to the free throw line, but Highland was forced to defend after Smith missed the front end of the one-and=one. Smith was fouled again after the Scotties forced Dakarai Davis into an off-balance three, but the HCC guard was on the mark with both free throws in the double bonus to push the lead to five with 17 seconds left.
Southeast threw up a desperate flurry of shots in the final seconds, with Toliver missing a cleanup opportunity on his own layup miss and Davis falling short from distance after grabbing the offensive rebound.
After struggling in its prior two contests, Highland put up a respectable 42.4 percent (25-59) field goal percentage and held Southeast to a 36.2 percent (25-69) pace.
The Scotties are off for Thanksgiving weekend, returning to Ben Allen Field House on Dec. 2 for a 7 p.m. contest against Kansas Christian College.
