Men's Basketball Upset #13 Barton CC, 99-92

Fort Hays Tech Northwest Men's Basketball defeated the no. 13 ranked Barton Community College Cougars Saturday night, 99-92.

The game began slowly for both teams, with each focusing on tough defense. Barton held a slight advantage early on, but the Tigers took control at the 14:26 mark, leading 9-7. From there, Fort Hays Tech maintained a narrow lead. However, the momentum shifted in favor of the Cougars after a turnover led to a fastbreak dunk for Barton, forcing Tech to call a timeout with six minutes left, with the score at 26-25 in favor of Barton. Both teams continued to battle for the remainder of the half, with the Cougars holding on to a four-point lead, 40-36, going into halftime.

In the second half, the Tigers slowly regained control of the lead, tying the game 45-45 with 15:30 remaining before taking the lead. Both teams would continue to exchange leads back and forth before Tech regained the lead as sophomore Kalik Sharpe led the way in scoring, slashing his way to the hoop while also draining threes from outside as Barton seemed to have no answer defensively. The Tigers would extend their lead several times before the Barton cut the gap again. The Cougars would return within one point, 81-82, with four minutes remaining. However, it would not be enough to overtake the Tigers as they continued to hold on, with a four-point lead with 30 seconds remaining, as the Tigers ultimately sealed the victory at the free throw line.

Looking at the stats, the game came down to shooting efficiency, as the Tigers made more of their attempts despite fewer scoring opportunities. Fort Hays Tech shot 35 of 68 from the field, while Barton made 33 of 79. Kalik Sharpe led the way for the Tigers with a season-high 35 points, while Marquintez Dixon contributed 17 points and an impressive 10 blocks, setting a new school record.

Next up for FHNW Men's Basketball is a road game against Colby Community College's Trojans on Saturday.