Seward County opened up their 2024-25 season on Saturday afternoon after making a road trip out eastward to face the Fort Scott Greyhounds where the Saints struggled offensively all game long and combined with an unfortunate series of turnovers, fell on the road 70-60.
Both sides exchanged buckets through the first five minutes of the first half as Lovasoa Andriatsarafarashowed his presence in the paint with an offensive rebound into a converted second chance opportunity while Loic Affoumon knocked down three from the top of the arc to trim Fort Scott’s lead down to 11-9. Over midway through the half the Saints continued to fight from behind as Trayon Grant-Foster drew a foul to convert a pair at the free throw stripe to make it a 19-14 score with SCCC closing in on the Greyhounds. Kalen Streitentered in and immediately cashed in from long range for three with six minutes to go as Seward County trimmed the gap down to three but gave up a four-point play moments later to fall further behind. Streit made his way down the lane for two to cut the deficit back down to four while a block at the rim from Andriatsarafara helped hold off Fort Scott entering the break with the Saints trailing 29-25.
Kiku Parker helped get the lid off the rim for Seward County in the second half as a layup through contact allowed SCCC to remain within single digits of the Greyhounds 34-27. Deven Butleradded to the scoring run for the Saints with a steal leading to a one-handed slam before pulling up for three to make it 39-32 Fort Scott with 14:19 to go but another Greyhound spurt increased the deficit to double figures. Parker cashed in on back-to-back scores down the lane to try and bring his team back within reach while Muhammed Jobeused his size to score in the paint and keep the team within nine at 47-38. A big man slam from Andriatsarafara with six minutes to go gave Seward County momentum for a brief moment but could not maintain it as they eventually fell 70-60 on the road to start the season.
The Saints begin the 2024-25 season 0-1 after falling in Fort Scott and now return home to face Trinidad State inside of the Green House for their home opener on Monday with tipoff scheduled for 7:00 PM. The game airs on 107.5.