Night in and night out, the Jayhawk Conference has been a battle for the Dodge City men's basketball team all season, and Wednesday proved no different as they played their 17th game this season that was decided by single digits. The Conquistadors, despite a late push, fell 67-61 to Hutchinson. 

The Conqs with the loss fall to 15-9 on the season and 11-7 in KJCCC action. 

It was a slow start to the night with only nine combined points over the first four minutes of action as the Conqs trailed 5-4. The lead changed hands multiple times as the Conqs tied the game at 9-9 and then led 15-11 after a small run. Action stayed a single-possession game until the five-minute mark of the first half, when Hutchinson hit a three-pointer to double their lead to six at 23-17. The Blue Dragons of Hutchinson would cap the first, outscoring the Conqs 12-6 over the final five minutes of the half as the Conqs trailed 35-23 at halftime. The deficit for the Conqs went up to 14 over the first five minutes of the second half, but the Conqs slowly chipped away and drew within striking distance again, coming within three, but Hutchinson answered and would cap the contest, sending the Conqs to a tough 67-61 road loss. 

Offensively, the Conqs had their lowest scoring performance of the season on the lowest shooting percentage of the year, netting only 61 points on 34.8% shooting. Hutchinson shot the ball efficiently at 43.9% for the night. 

Rickey Loftin II tallied 16 points and grabbed six rebounds for the Conqs, while Andrew Mabry, off the bench, tallied 14 points on 5-7 shooting, including 4-6 from three-point range. Derrick Rivers added 11 points, while Brad Johnson chipped in 10 points, and Wesly Rosa made his return to the lineup, finishing with eight points and 14 rebounds. 

The Conqs have just six games remaining in the regular season and are back at home on Saturday, February 14th, at 3:00 pm versus Pratt.