Knights fall to No. 9 Barton

North Platte, Neb. – Parker Baumann led North Platte with 21 points, but it was not enough to upset No. 9 Barton Community College on Tuesday night, 74-71.

Michael Cooper chipped in 17 points on 6-of-12 shooting from the floor, while Davion Evans tallied 12 points in 39 minutes of action. Emmanuel Oladeru led the Knights on the glass, finishing with 10 rebounds to accompany his six points.

North Platte gave the Cougars all they could handle in the first half, as they jumped out to a 25-21 lead on a three by Baumann. Barton countered with a 10-2 run to recapture the lead with 5:02 to play in the opening half. Landon Broer connected on a jumper from the free throw line to ignite the Knights offense and halt the Cougars run.

In the final five minutes, Oladeru snagged a rebound and laid it in to knot the game up. The Cougars retook the lead on their next possession and never relinquished it down the stretch as they took a 41-39 lead into the break.

In the second half, Cooper drove through his defender to knot the game up on the Knights opening possession. The Knights and Cougars continued to trade blows, before a 6-0 spurt midway through the half helped the Cougars push their lead to 60-54. North Platte slowly cut into the margin before bringing fans to their feet in the final minute.

Back-to-back three pointers from Baumann and Evans cut the margin to 74-71 with six seconds remaining. A missed free throw by Barton and a quick fast break gave North Platte one opportunity to send the game into overtime. The corner three fell short as time expired to end the Knights come from behind attempt.

North Platte finished the game shooting 50 percent (30-60) from the floor, while connecting on 6-of-19 from the perimeter against the Cougars.

North Platte returns to road action on Friday against State Fair Community College. Tip is set for 7 p.m. in Sedalia, Mo.